The Case that Reopened Eight Year Old Wounds
by Riri.Riii
Summary: Kaitlin has been working at BAU with Hotch's team for four years but when a case she closed eight years ago suddenly comes back to haunt her she begins to learn that maybe she was more stuck in the middle of it then she realized. Reid/OC
1. Chapter 1

(A Criminal Minds fic? Seriously? Yup, this is going down. As a celebration of the return of AJ Cook and Paget Brewster to the show...and since I spent my very lame summer watching Criminal Minds I decided to write a Criminal Minds fanfic. The pairing is Reid and (yet another) OC. It takes place during Seasons four and five, except for this first chapter which I have used as a way to show how my OC acts with the other characters. It's Rated M mostly for language and violence...and if I can possibly get myself to write another smut chapter...I will but that's still yet to be decided...So enjoy & I know you readers get this a lot but Reviews are welcomed and loved.)

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds belongs to it's legal owners

Chapter One:

The team took hits, of course all teams eventually take hits, but killers had a passion for going after those that were usually hunting them. The hunters became the hunted. Sometimes it was as simple as one of them being jailed for a misunderstanding or it was something as serious one of them as one of them being drugged and tortured. But it didn't matter whatever it was…it all scared her and brought tears to her eyes. She became terrified that she couldn't help them in the end. Her ultimate flaw was that she cared about the people around her too much. Her name is Kaitlin Melrose.

Profiler, Profiled:

She watched as Supervisory Special Agent Derek Morgan sat on the floor of the interrogation room with his knees hiding his face from the glass pane that separated the two rooms. She looked at her bosses FBI Unit Chief Aaron Hotchner, Hotch, and Senior Supervisory Special Agent Jason Gideon. "Hotch, Gideon?" They looked at her briefly as she twisted the yellow rose in her hand nervously. "Can I go talk to him?" She noticed the frown on Gideon's face, but Hotch looked at her with interest. "As a friend…not as an investigator." She specified then watched as Hotch's face fell and she quickly spoke again before he could tell her no. "I swear I won't mention the investigation or anything but I just want to talk to him. Please?"

Hotch looked at her more seriously now and gave a small nod, "Go ahead, but nothing on the case."

"Of course, sir." She headed to the door but didn't open it because Hotch spoke again.

"And, Kaitlin…" She looked at him, "No food."

She placed her hand on her chest dramatically, "I am hurt that you would think I'd feed a suspect." She opened the door and headed inside before he could respond.

"You know you give her far too much leeway." Gideon told him.

Hotch smiled lightly, "I know but she's harmless when it comes to situations like this."

* * *

><p>Kaitlin looked at Morgan as he sat on the floor, pretending to be unaware that someone had entered the room. "Derek?" She whispered his name, careful not to activate the anger that had probably built up in him over the last couple of hours since they had arrived and started treating him like a suspect.<p>

He looked up, "Melrose? What did they send you in here to see if you could get some information out of me?"

She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow, "Is that really what you think of me? I am hurt, really I am." She walked over and knelt in front of him, making sure that her bag rested on her lap. She held the rose out in between them and he took it. "I'm here if you want to talk and right now anything you say will stay between us."

He shook his head, "There's nothing to talk about. I didn't do anything."

"I know, Derek. I know." She whispered soothingly. "And the others do too, though some of them have a harder time admitting it, so don't worry. We'll find whoever killed those boys and let them get the justice they deserve."

He looked at her again and the look in her eyes made him believe her, even if it was just for a second. Then he looked at how she positioned herself in between the mirror where he knew Hotch and Gideon were watching then he quickly noticed how her bag sat on her lap. "Do you have something to eat?"

"When don't I?" She laughed and pulled out a cereal bar from her bag. "It's the healthiest thing I've got." She handed it to him then waited for him to finish it so she could take the wrapper. "Don't tell Hotch I just did that, he'll get mad and I'm not sure if you've noticed but angry Hotch is angry."

He laughed, though it was a small one. His free hand wrapped around her and pulled her into a hug, "Thank you." He whispered as her face turned red.

* * *

><p>She walked out of the interrogation room to find Hotch and Gideon staring at her. "Did you find anything out?" Hotch asked.<p>

"Nope, I told you I was going in as a friend and not as an investigator. And that's exactly what I did." She stretched. "Now I'm going to go and see if I can help the others."

Revelations:

Agent Gideon, their technical analyst Penelope Garcia, and Kaitlin watched as Garcia flagged the most recent video posted by Tobias Hankel as a virus. Then after a couple of minutes they watched as Supervisory Special Agent Dr. Spencer Reid and Tobias appeared on the many screens in front of them.

"This ends now. Confess your sins." Tobias told the man bound to the chair in front of him. Garcia's eyes widen as they saw Tobias hit Reid. "Confess."

"I haven't done anything." Reid whimpered causing Tobias to hit him again. "Tobias, help me." Reid pleaded.

"He can't help you, he's weak. Confess!" Tobias told him. Kaitlin barely heard Reid whimper "Tobias." again, over what she assumed was Charles Hankel's voice…or at least the manifestation of what Tobias assumed was his father.

Tobias hit Reid again, causing Garcia's breath to quicken. "Confess your sins." Tobias's voice was now just a whisper to them. Reid squeaked and then his chair was pushed to the floor. The chair hit the floor with a thud and Reid started convulsing.

"Oh my God he's killing him." Garcia whispered.

"Reid!" Kaitlin cried out, though she knew he couldn't hear her, as her hands covered her mouth. She felt the tears that had built up in her eyes spill over.

They heard Tobias say, "That's the devil vacating your body." then he walked out of the hut where he kept Reid.

"Oh God…Reid no. Please dear God no." Kaitlin whispered as they continued to watch the computer screens, praying for a miracle.

Shortly after Tobias dashed into the hut again and quickly began giving Reid CPR. The others gathered into the small computer room, watching and hoping that it would work. Then they saw Reid start coughing then turned his head back and forth.

They let out a collective breath as they quickly realized that he was alive. "I think that just waned ten years off my life." Kaitlin sighed as she sat down.

"Wait, wait a second. When was the video of the last murder posted?" Supervisory Special Agent Emily Prentiss asked.

"9:23." Garcia told her.

"And…and what was the time of death?" Prentiss asked.

"The 911 call came in at 9:04 and the murder must have been moments later." Hotch told them.

"That's only a 19 minute difference." Their communications liaison Supervisory Special Agent Jennifer Jareau, JJ, stated.

"It only takes about two to three minutes to post an mpeg online." Kaitlin told them.

"Let's call it two. You figure a maximum of sixty miles an hour in a residential area: that means that Hankel has to be in a seventeen mile radius of the crime scene." Morgan told them.

"Garcia can we see it on a map?" Hotch asked.

"Yeah." Garcia told them quietly. They watched as she put the locations up on an electronic map.

"Call Farraday. I want that area locked down like it's Marshal law." Gideon told them in a cold tone.

"Guys." Garcia brought their attention back to the video of Reid and Tobias.

The watched as Tobias circled Reid and heard Tobias speak in an emotionless tone, which Kaitlin recognized as Raphael. "You came back to life."

"Raphael." Reid breathed.

"There can only be one of two reasons." Raphael told him.

"I was given CPR." Reid explained in a strained voice.

"There are no accidents. How many members are on your team?"

"Seven, excluding our technical analyst who's still in Virginia."

"The seven angels who ride the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound. The first sounded and there followed hail and fire mixed with blood and they were thrown to Earth." Raphael recited.

"He thinks its revelation: the seven archangels versus the seven angels of death." Hotch explained.

They watched as Raphael lifted Reid's chair up, then when Raphael was in front of him again he spoke, "Tell me who you serve."

"I serve you." Reid spoke almost confidently.

"Then choose one to die."

"What?" Suddenly he wasn't so confident anymore.

"Your team members choose one to die." Raphael explained.

"Kill me." Reid told him.

"You said you weren't one of them."

"I lied."

"Your team has six other members, tell me who dies."

"No." Reid's confidence was back now that he had to protect his friends.

Raphael pulled out a revolver, causing Kaitlin to gasp she didn't want to see this though she had managed this far. He placed a single bullet inside and spun the cylinder, as if it was a game of Russian roulette. He then knelt down in front of Reid and pointed the revolver towards his captive. "Choose and prove you'll do God's will." Raphael told him.

"No." Reid stared down the revolver, unblinking, as Raphael pulled the trigger, though it was blank.

Reid closed his eyes, as Raphael spoke again, "Choose."

"I won't do it." Reid told him as he opened his eyes. This time Garcia jumped back as Raphael pulled the trigger again. The round was once again blank.

"Life is a choice."

"No." Once again Reid refused, and once again Raphael pulled the trigger though the round was still blank.

"Choose."

This time there was hesitation on Reid's part, "I choose," Everyone's eyes widened at this, "Aaron Hotchner." Slowly the room unfroze and everyone's eyes moved slightly to Hotch, though they all remained facing the screens. But Reid continued speaking, "He's a classic narcissist, thinks he's better than everyone else on the team. Genesis 23:4. Let him not deceive himself in trust, in emptiness, vanity, falseness, and futility. For these shall be his recompense."

As Reid finished Hotch exited the room and the next shot Raphael fired was aimed at the wall and loaded. He let the shell drop to the floor and grabbed another one, "For God's will." He slipped the bullet into the round and spun the cylinder then closed it which finally caused Gideon to follow Hotch into the next room and this time everyone followed him.

"I'm not a narcissist." Hotch explained.

"Awe, come on look you can't anything-" Gideon told him, though he was cut off.

"That's not what I'm talking about. No stop. Stop. Alright everybody right now, what's my worst quality?" Hotch asked, though they all stayed quiet. "Alright, I'll start. I have no sense of humor."

"You're a bully." JJ told him.

"I'm a bully."

"You can be a drill sergeant, sometimes." Morgan told him.

He nodded, "Right."

"You don't trust women as much as men." Prentiss explained.

But just before he was about to speak again Kaitlin, who had had her tongue pressed to her cheek the whole time, spoke, "You can be exceedingly…harsh sometimes."

He looked at her and tried not to laugh, "Okay good, I'm all these things but none of you said that I ever put myself above the team because I don't ever. Reid and I argued about the definition of classic narcissism and he knew that I would remember that. And he also quoted Genesis chapter twenty three verse four. Read it." He passed the book to JJ.

"I am a stranger no sojourner with you. Give me property for burial place among you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight." Her voice trailed off as Gideon began to smile slightly.

"He wouldn't get it wrong unless it was on purpose." Hotch smiled knowingly.

"He's in a cemetery." Morgan deduced aloud.

They entered the room where Garcia still remained as she brought up the now screen sized map. "I don't see a cemetery." Prentiss told them.

"Call up the first time we saw Reid." Gideon told Garcia.

They watched as the small video now covered a screen, "I won't choose who gets slaughtered and have you leave their remains behind like a poacher." Reid's eyes shifted towards the camera for a brief moment before he began staring down his tormenter again.

"Check to see if there were reports of poaching in the last couple of days." Hotch told Garcia.

"Okay…a…farmer reported two sheep being slaughtered on his property." Garcia told them.

"Where we talking?" Morgan asked as Garcia zoomed in on the map.

"Wha-what's that patch of green there?" JJ asked as she leaned forward.

"Marshall Perish, I think it's an old plantation." Hotch told them.

"Wait Tobias wrote in his journals about staying clean and keeping away from Marshall." Prentiss told them.

"Guys there's a cemetery on the grounds." Garcia told them.

"Then…" Kaitlin asked nearly bouncing on her feet. "We know where we're going?"

"Yeah, let's get Farraday's men and head to Marshall Perish." Hotch told them.

The drive had seemed impossibly long, though it had taken them less than fifteen minutes to get there. Kaitlin mostly sat clenching and unclenching her hands, as they drove, nervous that they might get there too late. Morgan's eyes shifted over to her, from where he sat in the driver's seat. His hand left the wheel for just a moment and he touched her shoulder. "Hey, what's wrong?" He asked.

She looked up, startled, "Is it wrong for me to be worried?"

"Not at all, but keep your chin up. We need you at your best." He told her.

"Don't forget, you're not the only one who's worried. But you don't give Reid enough credit, he's stronger then you think." Prentiss told her from the back seat.

Kaitlin took a deep calming breath as Morgan pulled over behind Hotch's SUV, and looked at her again. She nodded at both of them as she got out, "Let's go get Reid back."

They snuck to the door of the cabin and Gideon nodded, "Go!"

Hotch kicked open the door and Morgan yelled "FBI!" It was only moments later that the chorus of 'Clear's rung out impossibly loud in the small cabin.

"Ugh, what's that smell?" Prentiss asked.

"Burning or burnt fish hearts and livers...It apparently keeps away the devil." Kaitlin told them as she looked around.

"How do you even know that?" Morgan asked her.

"I did take religion back in high school." That's when she saw a pair of brown shoes and an orange and black stripped sock. "Oh look I found Cinderella's shoes and apparently his sock." She stuffed the sock into one of the shoes and started carrying them in her left hand.

Hotch ignored her comment, "Let's spread out, they have to be on foot. Go."

He and Morgan took the left, JJ and Kaitlin headed down the center, and Prentiss and Gideon took the right. Each of them had a small group of state police with them. But they all heard the gun shot and when Hotch called for Reid. They ran towards the main part of the cemetery where Reid was.

Hotch helped him up and Reid threw his arms around him. "I knew you'd understand." He said, and it sounded on like he was on the brink of tears.

Hotch quickly stepped aside so JJ could get through and the two hugged. "I'm so sorry." She whispered.

"It's alright it wasn't your fault." He told her as Gideon walked up.

"Let's get you out of here." Gideon told him as everyone began walking away.

"Can I have a second alone?" Reid asked and Gideon obliged.

Kaitlin turned her back as Gideon walked up, she understood Reid's wish. "Do you have him covered?" Gideon asked.

"I've got him covered don't worry, go catch up with the others." She smiled her best smile and he patted her on the back. She watched as his back slowly became smaller and more blurred against the darkness. She stopped herself from jumping when she heard a staggering hop from behind her. "Can I turn around now?"

"Depends, do you have enough energy to get both of us to a SUV?" Reid asked.

She turned around and for the first time that night she got a decent look at him. It brought tears to her eyes, but she ignored them and raised an eyebrow instead, "Reid, honey, I have enough energy to carry you to the SUV." She went over to him and offered him her right shoulder.

"Thanks." His leaned on her heavily.

"I rescued your shoes, and your sock, if you want them." She felt him cringe, as they started walking. "Too soon?"

"Yeah."

"So I can't call you Cinderella anymore?"

"Please don't…and I don't think Cinderella lost a sock."

"She also only lost one glass slipper, though. And I don't think your shoes count as slippers…"

"Nor are they made of glass."

"Which is a good thing because that would look ridiculous on you." They looked at each other and smiled, though his was a bit forced. She waited a bit before speaking, "You know I'm here for you, if you want to talk right?"

"Yeah, I know."

Lucky/Penelope:

The new Senior Supervisory Special Agent David Rossi, Hotch, Kaitlin, Prentiss, and Reid watched Morgan enter the interrogation room with Father Marks. They both sat down and faced Floyd Feylinn. "Thank you for coming father." Floyd spoke.

"Anything I can do…" Father Marks was cut off by Morgan.

"Floyd, I had to pull some serious strings to get him here. My bosses didn't like the idea at all of sending him in. Now they're going to allow him to sit right here and listen, but you're going to talk to me, alright?" Morgan told him.

"Okay." Floyd muttered. "I've done some really bad things."

"Everybody's done things they're not proud of, Floyd. The only thing that helps is to talk about them, to tell other people. Things are always better after you talk about them." Morgan spoke again.

"Not everything." Floyd shook his head.

Rossi's voice made Kaitlin pull away from the in room window and look at him. "This is strange. When he entered the park Feylinn signed the volunteer sign in sheet but his names not on list of searchers."

Kaitlin felt her stomach squeeze and suddenly got a cold chill up her spin, but when she heard Morgan's voice again she turned. "Come on Floyd, I got him here like you asked. Now it's your turn. Tell us where is Tracy Lamburge?"

"Something's wrong." Rossi said.

"Father," Floyd began, "I feel so alone. I feel like God has abandoned me." Morgan signaled for Father Marks to respond but Floyd kept talking. "Why?"

"You are not alone, my son." Father Marks told him. "God is in all of us."

Kaitlin's stomach squeezed again as she saw Floyd raised his head enough to look at Father Marks. "We need to stop the interview." She heard Rossi but his voice was distant.

"So is Tracy Lamburge." Floyd told them.

"Oh God." Kaitlin gagged then headed for the door which Prentiss opened for her as she ran to the closest bathroom. She knew why he looked familiar now; he had been serving the food at the park…food she had nearly eaten. Everything she had eaten since they had gotten there came back up with a vengeance.

* * *

><p>Rossi looked at the plane's bathroom door, where Kaitlin had locked herself away as soon as they got on the plane. He was surprised to think she still had anything left in her stomach. "Does she normally do that?" He asked Hotch and Reid, before they passed out on the flight back.<p>

Hotch looked up and at the bathroom door, "This is the first time I've ever seen her get sick…"

"I think it was because she almost ate some of what Feylinn was serving." Reid told them.

"Almost?" Rossi asked.

"She found an extra granola bar in her bag." Reid shrugged.

"That granola bar saved me." Kaitlin told them from the bathroom door, now changed into a fresh set of clothes and her hair was now neatly pulled back into her usual bun. She looked at Hotch, "Hotch I am officially retiring from being anywhere near an interrogation room while we interrogate homicidal cannibals." She headed to the fridge and pulled out a small pink carton of milk.

"Okay, just promise me you won't get any more ideas of eating things that are offered at search and rescue sites." He looked at her seriously.

"Deal." She nodded as she grabbed a plastic bag full of straws out of her bag and put one into her milk carton, sipping on it gently. "Now if you don't mind I'm going to drink my milk and go take a nap."

Rossi looked at her with a raised eyebrow, "I swear she's probably the only person in the BAU who doesn't drink coffee."

Reid and Hotch both looked at each other, "She is the only person in the BAU who doesn't drink coffee." Hotch told him.

* * *

><p>As Kaitlin stepped out of the shower she heard her cell phone ring. "Agent Melrose."<p>

"Kaitlin." JJ's voice was quiet but it sent chills up her spine. "Penelope's been shot."

"What? Where are you now?" JJ told her the hospital name. "I'll be there in fifteen."

* * *

><p>She arrived just after Reid did, "What happened? How is she? When can we see her?"<p>

"She's still in surgery." JJ told them both, "There's no word."

"This is crazy." Reid swallowed.

Shortly after, Rossi arrived, "What do we know?"

"The police think it's a botched robbery." Hotch told them as Prentiss came up.

"Where's Morgan?" She asked.

"His calls are going straight to voicemail." Kaitlin told her.

"I'm going to go call him again." Reid told them as he walked off.

"I'm going to go see if I can get some more information." JJ told them as she left their group.

Rossi spoke to Hotch in a hushed tone, "What aren't you saying?"

"I spoke to one of the paramedic's who brought her in," Hotch shook his head slightly; "it doesn't look good."

Kaitlin sat down and clasped her hands together, "Come on Garcia you can survive this." She whispered.

JJ came back shortly after, "They can't give me an update."

Then Reid returned, "Morgan's phone is still going straight to voice mail."

"Where the hell is he?" Prentiss snapped.

Kaitlin had decided to go get everybody coffee while they waited, saying that she couldn't just sit down and wait for answers when Hotch had looked at her with a raised eyebrow. When she came back Morgan was walking towards the group. JJ stood to meet him, "She's been in surgery for a couple of hours now."

"I was in church, my phone was off." Morgan said as he looked at Hotch.

"There was nothing you could have been doing here." Reid told him, as Kaitlin passed around the coffee mugs, with drawings on the lids.

"Do the police got any leads?" Morgan asked.

"I spoke to the lead detective and he doesn't think we'll get anything from the scene." Hotch told him then looked at Kaitlin, "Did you get anything for yourself?" He looked down at the mug, "And why does my coffee mug have a scowl on top of it?"

"I got bored?" She shrugged as the doors behind them opened.

"Penelope Garcia?" The doctor asked. They all managed to squeak out some sort of yes. "The bullet went in her chest and ricocheted into her abdomen, she lost a lot of blood. It was touch and go for a while but we were able to repair the injuries."

"So what are you saying?" JJ asked.

"One centimeter over and it would have torn right through her heart. Instead she could actually walk out of here in a couple days." The doctor smiled as a collective sigh was released. "And I'd say that's a minor miracle. She needs her rest but you can see her in the morning."

They all said their collective thanks as the doctor walked away. Then they all turned to Hotch, "David and I will go to the scene, I think the rest of you should be here when she wakes up. I don't care about protocol, I don't care whether we're working this officially or not we don't touch any new cases until we find out who did this." He and Rossi left.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin waited as Garcia opened her eyes, her chair was near the bed and she had one of Garcia's hands in hers. "There she is, hold on okay? I'm going to go get the others." She got up and left the room. "Guys she's up."<p>

"I'll call Hotch." JJ told them. The phone call was short and they all piled into Garcia's hospital room.

JJ went over to the head of the bed and kissed Garcia's cheek. "Hey, no tears." Garcia told them weakly. "I'm afraid if I start crying, I'll come unstapled."

"How are you feeling?" Morgan asked.

"Confused, stupid, and in pain." Garcia looked at him.

"Are you up for some questions?" JJ asked.

"I never saw it coming. He seemed deliciously normal." She told them.

"You know him?" Reid asked.

She shook her head, "You were right, I shouldn't have trusted it."

"What are you talking about?" Morgan asked.

"It was that guy I told you about. The one I met at the coffee shop. I wanted to believe he was interested in me." She said quietly.

"Forget that." He told her.

She continued to talk, "I let my guard down."

"Do you have any idea why he would have done this?" Prentiss asked.

"Did he threaten you?" Reid asked. "Did he want something?"

"I just thought he liked me." Garcia took a few gasping breaths.

"Okay um…we're going to come back in a little while." JJ told her.

"We need a name." Kaitlin sighed.

"James Colby Balor." Garcia told them.

Prentiss wrote it down while she left the others started to follow her, but Kaitlin quickly looked at Garcia again. "Don't worry, Penelope. We're going to find this S.O.B." She walked out.

The tone in her voice sent chills up JJ's spine as Garcia grabbed her hand. "JJ. Can you stay for a sec?"

* * *

><p>Prentiss, JJ and Kaitlin watched as a suit from Internal Affairs began taking down their photos of the crime scene at Garcia's apartment. "Is this really necessary?" JJ asked.<p>

"It's protocol." He told her, causing Prentiss to shake her head. The silence made him speak again, "Yes it's necessary. Mr. Lynch here will do an auditive of her computer and I will oversee the investigation."

"A federal employee was just gunned down and you make it seem like investigating her is more important than finding out who shot her." JJ told him angrily.

"Well that's not true, the police have jurisdiction and trust me I will offer them the full force of the FBI to solve this case." He told her.

"With all due respect, sir, the BAU is part of that force." Prentiss told him.

He looked at her, "Look I'm sorry, I realize how hard this must be…"

"But?" JJ asked.

"But the first thing you look at is victimology, correct?" They all nodded. "The Bureau needs to know what she's involved in and whether it has to do with why she was shot." The moment he said that Kaitlin was trying to force back laughter. She knew Garcia and she knew she wasn't involved in anything. But she couldn't stop the first snort of laughter from coming out, drawing the attention of the IA's suit to her. "Is something funny, Miss. Melrose?" He asked.

"Yeah, there is actually. You thinking that Garcia, OUR Penelope Garcia, is capable of being involved in anything is hilarious." She crossed her arms defiantly.

"And you're certain of that?" He asked, glaring at her now.

"One hundred percent, sir." She smiled.

He went to the other side of the table and began picking up the files. "What do you know about how she was recruited to the FBI?"

* * *

><p>JJ, Reid and Kaitlin walked into Garcia's very purple apartment, "What's going on?" JJ asked.<p>

"I love the color of your walls." Kaitlin looked up and around.

They ignored her, "I don't know, but this guy's getting seriously bold and I can guaranty it's not over." Morgan told them as he pulled away from the window.

"You okay?" JJ asked.

"I don't know what he wants from me." Garcia shook her head.

"Could you know something about him?" Reid asked.

"I don't know." Her voice was shaking.

"Maybe something he wants?" He asked again.

"I don't know who he is…I'm so scared."

"I know." JJ told her as Kaitlin walked over.

"We're here for you, and I, on the one hand, am not leaving your side until he's either locked up, or dead." She told them as she placed a hand on Garcia's shoulder.

They all looked at her, but Morgan spoke first, "I don't think I've ever seen you wish someone was dead. Ever."

She smiled coldly, "Nobody, and I mean nobody fucks with my friends and gets away with it."

Prentiss, Hotch and Rossi walked into the door. Prentiss had a raised eyebrow, "I honestly think that is the first time I've ever heard you swear." Her words caused Kaitlin to blush. "Anyways did you get a look at him?"

"Nothing solid." Morgan told her.

"Garcia we need to get you back to the hospital." Hotch told her.

"No." She pleaded.

"No." JJ started, "You know what you- you should still be there. We need to get her some place safe."

"I feel safe with all of you." Garcia told them.

"We can take you to the BAU." Hotch told her and she gave a small nod.

JJ stood and offered her a hand, but she started spacing out. "Garcia?"

"You okay?" Reid asked.

"When we were at dinner they wanted to seat us by a window but he insisted on sitting at the worst table in the place and he sat with his back to the corner." Garcia told them.

Looks passed around the room as the detectives came in, "Detective, can you clear the room for just a minute?" Hotch asked.

"I got a dead cop downstairs; I'm considering this place as part of the crime scene." The detective told him.

"I know, just a couple of minutes." Hotch told him.

"Do what you got to do." The detectives turned to leave.

"Thank you."

"Tell us about the car." Reid asked Garcia once they were gone.

"Why?"

Morgan spoke, "Just go with him."

"You said it was white, four door, American, what else?" Reid asked her.

She shook her head, "That's it. It was just a car."

"Now come on think. Anything?" Morgan encouraged her. "Go back."

"The seatbelt was buckled behind his back." She told them in realization causing another look to go around the room. "Why does that matter?"

"It wasn't a rental, it was for surveillance." Kaitlin told her.

"Agents don't wear seatbelts; they need to get out in a hurry." Prentiss said as she paced lightly.

"Alright let's cut the crap, you need to be straight with us. Right now." Rossi told Garcia as he sat down on the table. "Look at me, not them."

"I'm not hiding anything." She told him.

"You got shot. Most people get shot for a reason." He told her, but she looked at away so he snapped. "Eyes here!"

"Hey ease up, Rossi!" Morgan told him.

"You've got a room full of people here willing to believe that an FBI agent is trying to kill you. We need to know everything you do on company time that we don't know about." He told her. "What?"

"Come on man." Morgan tried again.

"Um…it's nothing bad." She started.

"Spit it out!" Rossi told her.

"It's nothing bad!" She repeated, "It's just…I council victims' families and they know where I work so sometimes they ask me to look into cases for them."

"What does that mean?"

"It just means that the cases, the unsolved ones, I tag them so whoever investigating knows that the FBI considers them a priority." Her words became whispered as Kaitlin's palm met her own forehead.

"You're not authorized to do that." Hotch told her as he began to pace.

"I know I was just trying to help." She pleaded.

"But whoever's working those cases thinks you're watching them." Prentiss told her.

"I just want to put the pressure on them so that they don't slide." She argued quietly.

"How many cases are we talking about?" Hotch asked.

"I don't know seven, eight maybe. I need to get into my system." She told him.

"You can't, you're suspended." He reminded her.

Morgan spoke then, "Wait a minute, Garcia. On your date you said this guy was pressing you to find out if you were working murder cases." She quickly nodded. "Hotch; we gotta look at those files."

Hotch looked a Rossi who spoke, still in a rather harsh tone. "I told you I'm sick of this jag off being in front of us."

"Dave's right. We'll go back to the BAU. Morgan, Reid, Prentiss and Melrose you stay here and make sure that no one forgets to log out of the system. Garcia should not have access." Hotch told them.

"Understood." Kaitlin told him, though she was the one who later gave Garcia access to her BAU account.


	2. Chapter 2

(A/N: Woot chapter two! Wow these last two chapters are really long. Eek. This chapter takes place during the events of the first Reaper related episode. But we're finally getting towards actual fanfiction plot. YAY! So Enjoy & possibly review if you feel like it. =D)

Disclaimer: Criminal minds and lyrics belong to their legal owners

Chapter Two:

Spencer Reid found himself stumbling through the mass amounts of people on the train while trying to keep his muffin from being squished and his coffee from being spilt. The train was packed more so then usual, due to the strangely cold weather they were having. As he approached his usual spot he saw a hat he recognized standing by the train doors. The thick purple knitted garment had the face of a cat knitted in it including the ears. When they had first seen the hat they had thought it was a ridiculous thing to give an adult but it turned out it fit the owner's quirky personality perfectly. Of course this was the same woman who had called his mother beautiful the first time he had her brought to the BAU for protection.

He walked over to where Kaitlin stood bundled up in her thick black jacket and purple hat. She had her hands pushed deep into her pockets as she stared at the wall of the train with unseeing eyes. Which he instantly found strange because if there was one reason she took the train it was so that she could people watch and work on her profiling skills…well that and it was probably too cold to drive to work on her motorcycle.

"Kaitlin?" He asked when he got close enough but she didn't respond. He tried a little bit louder this time, "Kaitlin?" When she didn't respond again he began to get worried. He quickly stuffed his muffin into his satchel and snapped his fingers in front of her face.

She jumped when a pair of fingers found their way into her line of sight and they snapped. Her hand quickly moved past her coat and she had her gun out as she looked at the person who the fingers belonged to. When she saw a hand up and a hand wrapped around a cup of coffee she instantly knew who the hands belonged to even before she looked up at the scared face of Dr. Reid. "Damn it Reid!" She cried as she holstered her gun.

"What? I called your name twice and that still didn't get your attention!" He told her.

"Sorry…let's try that again." She returned to her original position then turned back to him. "Oh good morning Reid, you startled me."

"Sorry. Are you alright? That level of being lost in thought is strange, even for you." He asked.

"It's nothing important." She looked at his coffee then back at his face then her gaze shifted back to the paper coffee cup in his hand. "Is that still warm?"

"Yeah…why?" He looked down at her suspiciously.

She looked up at him, "I can't feel my fingers." He sighed and handed her his coffee. As she held the liquid safely away from her face she asked, "Have you eaten something?"

"Have you?" He asked completely avoiding her question.

She frowned, "You can't do that…breakfast is the most important meal of the day."

He looked at her, "I have a muffin in my bag. So have you eaten breakfast?" He watched as the look on her face changed. "Aha! You haven't had breakfast yet either!" He paused, "Wait why haven't you eaten yet? You always eat breakfast before you leave."

"There was chaos this morning!" She paused and muttered something he could barely hear. "Chaos and roses…" She looked back at him, "Anyways I barely had time to shower this morning…"

"Oh did something happen in paradise?" He asked as the train doors opened and they got out. She gave him back his coffee and dug her gloved fingers back into her pockets.

"Why is it that whenever something happens you guys instantly think that my love life is involved?" She kept her head down to keep the wind out her face.

"Because usually it is."

"Perhaps I'm just upset over the fact that I abandoned smiling pancakes just to make it to work on time?" She shot a glance at him while he sipped his coffee, the look he gave her was one that said 'Sure just try that lie with the others.' She looked back at the ground, "I hate profilers."

"That doesn't make any sense, you're a profiler too." He looked at her more seriously now. "So did something happen?"

She looked up to see the flower shop she visited at least once a week. "Go on ahead, I'll catch up."

"Again? I swear half of your pay check goes to flowers." He rolled his eyes.

"What? My larkspurs are dying. And it's more like a third…" She shrugged and walked inside the shop with a wave.

He sighed and looked at his watch then decided he could wait five minutes before needing to head the rest of the way to the BAU without her. But as usual she was out in three, "On time…as usual."

"And you're waiting around when I told you to go on ahead, like usual." She looked at him quickly then began walking ahead of him.

"So you aren't going to tell me what happened then?" He guessed as he caught up.

"You are incorrigible, you do know that right?" He nodded and she sighed. "How about this…I'll give you three guesses from the moment we arrive at the BAU and then you have until I arrive at my desk inside the bullpen to use those three guesses." She offered.

"What do I get out of it?" He asked.

"A sated curiosity and I'll…buy you lunch."

"Can I ask for hints?"

"Nope, you've got to use what you've learned so far."

"Deal." They shared a grin then began to finish their walk in silence.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin pulled off her hat as they walked into the F.B.I. building, she and Reid waved to the woman at the front desk, who unlocked the first doors of security. As they passed through the second the doors, Kaitlin's eyes drifted to Reid and she could practically see the gears turning in his head then suddenly she was surprised that she didn't see smoke coming out of his ears.<p>

When they entered the elevator he spoke, "Amarelle," Her German shepherd, "had her puppies today?"

"No, though the vet said she still had a few more days to go at least." She smiled as he went back to thinking.

The elevator dropped them off a few feet from the BAU room doors. They walked through the glass doors and headed to the little kitchen area, where he made himself another cup of coffee and she grabbed a small of carton milk out of the fridge. They started walking when he spoke again, "Did you two break up?" He asked her as he stirred his coffee.

She looked at him, her jaw dropped and she couldn't seem to form her words, "Wha? You-Are-" She took a breath and tried again, "I space out one time and you think we broke up?"

"So no then?" He began thinking again, that's when he noticed she was still wearing her gloves. The BAU was warm and normally she would take off her gloves when she took off her hat. He got a decent view of her left hand as she brought her milk to her lips and that's when he noticed the bulge on her ring finger. "Ah! I've got it! You're wearing…"

The moment he spoke in his 'I'm sure this is what I've been missing' tone she picked up her pace to a light jog. She didn't hear the rest of his analysis because she was out of hearing range before he even knew what was happening. The moment she was at her desk she placed the flowers down on it and sat down in her chair with a sigh, "Safe."

"What are you 'safe' from?" Morgan asked.

That's when Reid walked up, "That wasn't fair, you never said you'd run away."

"I didn't run away, I lightly jogged. There's a difference and it's not like I said I wouldn't lightly jog away if you got too close to the truth." They watched as he frowned and went to sit down at his desk.

"Are you two at it again?" Prentiss asked, "You shouldn't do that to him Kaitlin he'll stop trusting you."

She grinned, completely unrepentant, "I know…but he's just too smart for his own good."

"Okay what was today's topic?" Morgan asked, now suddenly curious.

"Why she was spacing out on the train this morning. And it's not because Amarelle had her puppies." Reid told them.

"Did you two break up?" Morgan asked. "Do you need a hug?"

"Seriously? Again?" Kaitlin looked up, but quickly brought her attention to the vase that sat on her desk. She pulled out the purple flowers and placed them on the towel she laid out. She quickly patted them down then opened the new bundle of flowers she bought. She pulled out the red roses and placed them in the vase.

"Red roses symbolize true love…so something did happen." Prentiss noticed.

"Will you just tell us already?" Morgan asked.

JJ walked in with a folder in her hands, "Tell us what?"

"Well…" Kaitlin started as she made a show of taking her right glove. "This morning when I woke up, Amarelle was waiting for me, nothing unusual there right? Well she had ribbons and roses attached to her at every possible location. At first I just thought it was cute until I noticed the note in her collar, which said 'follow me.' with a paw print stamped next to it. So as I did I noticed dozens of roses lining each and every hallway. So Amarelle led me to the kitchen where Raph," Her Siberian husky, "had something under his paw. I went to pick it up and it was a piece of rolled up paper attached to yet another rose and sealed with wax."

"Are you serious?" Morgan asked with a hint of skepticism in his voice.

"Morgan! Shut up! Some of us want to hear this!" Prentiss told him.

Kaitlin continued on, "When I unrolled the paper, all it said was 'turn around'. So I being a complete tool turned around and there Mikey was on one knee holding this!" She pulled off her left glove dramatically. She flashed the ring around their area in the bull pen. "He asked me to marry him." She knew she was grinning from ear to ear now.

"What'd you say?" JJ asked.

She blushed and scratched her cheek in embarrassment, "I didn't say anything, I was too busy crying and kissing him to say yes…but I think the message came across."

Morgan spun around in his chair, "In my opinion it's about time! I mean seriously, three years as a couple, two years living together. It took him long enough."

"Don't listen to him." Prentiss shot him a reproachful look and got up to hug her, "Congratulations."

"Thanks." Kaitlin looked at JJ who still had the file in her hands. "Um…JJ what's that?" She pointed to it.

"Oh right, I need to give this to Hotch. Congrats, when we get off tonight let's celebrate." JJ patted her on the back.

"I don't think so you have to get home to Henry otherwise he'll get all old and then you'll be all like 'Where did all the time go?' then you'll be sad that you missed it." She smiled, "Now go to our fearless leader with your important papers. We will be here weaving flowers, currently larkspurs, into our hair when you get back." They all looked at her with raised eyebrows.

JJ shook her head and smiled, "You're insane, you know that, right?"

Kaitlin saluted, "Yes ma'am. That is why you love me." JJ smiled again then walked to Hotch's office.

"So no celebrating tonight, but there will be a bachelorette party right?" Prentiss asked.

Suddenly Morgan looked up from his computer, "You two, JJ and Garcia…now that sounds like a party."

"Really? That sounds scary to me." Reid looked up.

"_But lately something__'__s changed and it__'__s hard to describe. Jessie__'__s got himself a girl and I wanna make her mine._" Blush covered Kaitlin's face as her phone started ringing. She began to undo the buttons on her coat trying to get to the bag underneath it. "_And she__'__s watching him with those eyes, and she__'__s loving him with that body I just know it. And he__'__s holding her in his arms late, late at night._" Kaitlin scoured her bag for her phone but it wasn't there, so she began patting the pockets of her pants and coat. "_You know I wish that I had Jessie__'__s girl! I wish that I had Jessie__'__s girl! Where can I find-_" She pulled the phone out of her inside jacket pocket.

"Hello?" She breathed as she began walking away from the group.

Morgan watched as she walked away with a raised eyebrow, "Who has 'Jessie's Girl' as a ring tone?"

"The same kind of person who does the 'Thriller' dance in the elevator." Prentiss sighed.

"Not to mention the kind of person who carries around at least a box's worth of granola bars in her bag." Reid told them as he went back to the files on his desk.

Kaitlin walked back as Hotch and JJ began walking out of his office, "Shouldn't we wait for the official request, we haven't been invited, sir." JJ told him as they walked down the stairs to the bullpen.

"We will be." Hotch told her.

She let out a huff of air and stopped near the others desks, "Well looks like we're going to Boston."

"Woo! Fieldtrip to Boston!" Kaitlin threw her hands up excitedly. They all looked at her then she shrugged, "What? It's better than Texas."

"What's wrong with Texas?" Morgan asked.

She pulled out her go bag, "I'm not sure if you've noticed but we go to Texas a lot." Prentiss looked at her again and this time she nodded.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin and Reid began making sure that the boards were set up for Hotch and Rossi to release the profile of The Reaper when they got back. She absently rubbed her left collar bone and winced. Reid was quick to notice this which made him ask, "Are you alright?"<p>

"I'm fine; it's just an old battle wound acting up." She continued putting up the pictures.

"But you haven't been injured once since you've come to the BAU." He looked at her with something that might have been close to envy.

"Ah, you're so young Reid. I was with the Maryland PD before I came to the BAU." She winced slightly again and whispered, "Though it's been eight years since I got this…"

He paused but then spoke quietly, "I noticed this on the plane but you're not wearing your engagement ring."

She smiled and pulled out the thin silver chain that rested under her shirt, "I am, just in a different sense."

He looked at it and noticed a different ring, which he thought was a graduation ring, and there it was, her engagement ring. "Why?"

"Because my first rule, and my most important rule, is that you never let the bad guy know that there is someone waiting at home for you. I can't wear this on my finger because what if we don't catch the bad guy? I won't ask Mikey to risk himself like that; at least not with the kind of people we face every day. Besides I'm really worried about it being stolen." She stuck the chain back into her shirt, though her hand clenched where the ring now rested.

He frowned and JJ patted her back causing her to jump, "Go call Mikey, Spence and I can handle the rest. Just get back before Hotch and Rossi." Kaitlin nodded and then went out to the hall.

* * *

><p>Hotch, Kaitlin and Rossi followed George Foyet into his apartment, who asked as soon as he was done coughing, "How'd you guys find me?"<p>

"Roy Colson." Hotch told him.

Foyet looked up with utter shock and disappointment on his face, "Oh…Well is this going to take long cause I really can't be late for work."

"What do you do?" Hotch spoke again.

Foyet swallowed the pills in his hand, "I'm a freelance computer specialist for the city."

"We're sorry to bother you; we'll make it as quick as possible." Rossi told him.

Kaitlin held out a pair of glasses, "Are these yours?"

"I knew it wasn't a copy cat…" Foyet told them as he started coughing and he headed for a chair. Rossi got him a glass of water as the coughing got worse. Rossi then handed him the glass and he whispered, "Thank you." After a long sip he spoke again, "I'm sorry. I was going to propose to her that night, at the restaurant but I got cold feet. The ring was still in my pocket when he approached us. He said he was lost; he had one of those sightseeing booklets. I was looking at it when he stabbed me."

"Mr. Foyet, you don't need to go through this again." Rossi told him.

"I couldn't move. I just sat there, bleeding. I watched him kill Mandy. He stabbed her sixty seven times." Foyet looked up at them.

'Sixty seven times?' Kaitlin thought to herself, 'What kind of person counts how many times their date was stabbed?'

"Do you know how long it takes to stab somebody sixty seven times?" He asked. "I never found the ring."

"He should have left your glasses on his next victim but he didn't he held onto them all this time." Hotch told him.

"What you think he's got some special interest in me? I've been living with that possibility for the past eleven years." Foyet told them bitterly.

Rossi watched as he got up, "Have you ever received any strange letters or calls, hang ups?"

"I keep residences under different names, I move between them randomly. He likes to get you in a car so I take the bus. Believe me I've gone through great lengths to make sure that none of the things you just mentioned never happened." He told them as he took another sip of water.

"We'll need you're other names and residences so we can reach you." Rossi handed him a black notepad.

"We can take you someplace safe until this is over." Hotch told him.

"No. Boston is my home; it's the one thing I promised I would never let him take from me."

"Then we'll protect you here."

"You can't protect me. Nobody can." Foyet began writing down in the notepad. "Please be careful with this. Please."

"It's safe with us." Rossi insisted as he took the notepad back.

Hotch spoke, "He's just a man, nothing more."

"Then why can't you catch him?" Foyet asked.

"We will." Hotch told him.

"Thank you for your time." Rossi told him, as they walked out of the apartment.

Hotch looked at Kaitlin as they approached the SUV, "What's on your mind?"

She frowned, "It's just that something doesn't sit right with this."

"What do you mean?" Rossi asked her.

She swallowed, "He watched his girlfriend, the woman he was planning to propose to, be stabbed sixty seven times, and he didn't do anything." She kept her last thought silent, 'And he counted how many times she was stabbed.'

"Kaitlin…fear is a paralyzing thing." Hotch told her.

"I know…" She told them as they got into the SUV and as soon as the door was closed she rubbed her left collar bone again, 'I know all too well…'

* * *

><p>"Why's he so focused on Foyet? What's so special about him?" Hotch asked as they analyzed the Reaper once more.<p>

"He was his only surviving victim." JJ told them. "The only one he couldn't defeat."

"But he's not a threat, defeating him would be no great accomplishment. There's something there that we're missing." Hotch frowned.

"What about the girlfriend? Amanda Bertrend? Wha-what do we know about her?" JJ asked again.

"Nineteen. A freshman, she came here from Michigan to go to school." Prentiss told them.

Kaitlin sat up, "Nineteen? Who asks a nineteen year old to marry them?" She paused, "At the age of nineteen college students, excluding boy genius over there," She watched as Reid frowned, "Just want to have fun. You don't settle down at nineteen…or at least they didn't ten years ago."

Prentiss looked over at her to see if she could continue, and Kaitlin nodded apologetically, "Foyet was a teacher's assistant in one of Amanda's courses."

"Michigan." Hotch told them seriously, "Where the Reaper had Shaunessy post the personal ad."

"That can't be a coincidence." JJ told them as she shook her head lightly.

Rossi spoke, "He told us that she was the love of his life. That he was going to propose."

"But she just got here from Michigan, they only met when the class started." Morgan explained.

"How long had she been in the class?" Hotch asked.

Prentiss looked around the table, "Four weeks."

"So either it was love at first sight…" JJ trailed off.

"Or Foyet was lying to us." Kaitlin told them with a furrowed brow.

"He was a twenty eight year old teacher's assistant of freshmen classes." Hotch told them as he picked up the phone and began dialing Garcia's number.

"That gives him plenty of access to young girls." Rossi told them.

"Garcia." Hotch spoke.

Garcia's voice rang clearly through the speaker, "I'm here."

"What are Foyet's aliases?" Hotch asked Rossi. "I want you to look up in Boston city records: Kevin Baskin, Myles Holden and William Parker. Try the Department of Education."

"Well played, sir. They all work for the Department of Education, they're all substitute teachers and they all teach computer science." Garcia told them.

"High school?" He asked.

"Yeah." There was a pause, "Opps. Scratch that, they're all not working for the Department of Education…"

"They're not?"

"No. William Parker was fired from alleged inappropriate behavior with his female students." She told them.

"Well this is starting to make more and more sense…I knew there was something wrong with him counting how many times Amanda was stabbed." Kaitlin told them.

"Hotch?" JJ asked as he zoned the room out.

"Colson went to see Foyet. Garcia I need you to locate Roy Colson's cell phone. George Foyet is the Reaper."

* * *

><p>Foyet had been arrested and now they were finally on their way back to Quantico. Reid placed a juice box in front of where Kaitlin's head lay on the table, "You alright?"<p>

She looked up, "Thanks, and to answer your question: I'm just tired. Right now all I want it to crawl into a nice warm bed, and sleep for the rest of the night then get breakfast in bed tomorrow."

He raised an eyebrow, "That's a bit demanding, isn't it?"

"Women are demanding creatures. And besides I haven't had time to even celebrate the fact that I'm engaged…" He watched as something dawned on her, "I'm…engaged."

"Yes…you made a big deal about it almost three days ago."

"That means I'm Mikey's fiancée…" He watched as her face became colored in blush, "It's so strange to say. Fiancée…" She tested the word a couple more times before she smiled shyly and strangely enough he found himself smiling along with her.

"I'm happy for you; though I'm starting to worry I'm being left behind. I mean first JJ now you."

She took one of his hands in her right one, "You're not being left behind. I mean you're Henry's godfather, so JJ will always be a part of your life and despite how I act sometimes, you're important to me, Reid." She watched as he blushed, and he gently squeezed her hand in return for the loss of words.

"Oh right…Garcia and I wanted to give you something for your birthday, but since this came up perhaps now's a better chance." He took his hand back and reached into his satchel then pulled out a small wrapped box.

"Oh my…should I be worried? I mean this is you and Garcia we're talking about." She smiled, "Thanks, can I open it?" He nodded. She peeled off the black ribbon and gently undid the purple wrapping, which was clearly done by Garcia; otherwise the amount of tape on it would have been sparingly used. When she finally managed to peel off the wrapping she opened the lid of the box and found herself staring down at what she assumed was a round lidded watch. But what she found interesting was the symbol and coloring on top of the lid, it was a purple 'h' with a line just above the arch. It was the planetary symbol for Saturn.

He waited for her to respond but she just stared down at it with wide eyes. "It's a communicator that hooks into your headset…" He explained, trying to get some sort of response from her. He watched with terror as tears filled her eyes. "Did we do something wrong?"

She shook her head, "It's not that…it's just…where did you find this?" She looked up at him.

He blushed and looked away slightly, "We didn't…Garcia thought up the design and I built it. She then added the applications and our numbers. There's a charger in there too so you won't have to worry about it dying on you during an assignment…and it also doubles as a watch." He laughed a bit.

She smiled, "So I guess that Ph. D in engineering isn't just for show then."

"So you like it?" He looked at her again.

She shook her head and his smile instantly faded, "Like isn't strong enough. Reid, I love it. Thank you."

"You hear that Garcia? She loves it." Prentiss had the camera on her phone pointed at the two sitting at the table.

"How long have you been there?" Reid asked the blush on his face was so red Prentiss worried his head would explode.

Kaitlin looked up and blushed, "I LOVE IT GARCIA!" She called loud enough to cause JJ and Rossi to wake up from their naps and caused Morgan and Hotch to look over from they were having their conversation towards where the others sat on the other end of the plane. Then when she saw she had everyone's attention she flaunted her second new favorite accessory.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin and Garcia walked into the BAU bullpen and noticed that everyone had gathered near the television. She walked over to see the mug shot of Foyet and a notice saying that he escaped. The smile on her face faded to a firm line, "I go talk to Garcia for a bit and I come back to find out that Foyet escaped?"<p>

"They're going to find him right?" Garcia asked.

If the frown on Hotch's face could have gotten any deeper it would have, "No they're not."

Morgan turned around to look at them. "He said he'd be more famous then we knew…and he was right."

After that there was a long silence before anyone spoke again, until Hotch sighed, "There's nothing we can do until the US Marshalls call us. So I want everybody to go home and try to get some rest. I'll call if there's any new information." They all nodded grimly and headed to their desks to grab their stuff. "And Kaitlin…"

She turned, "Yes Hotch?"

"Congratulations." He smiled slightly.

She smiled, "Thank you, sir." She quickly gathered her stuff and looked at the clock, then at Reid, who was still gathering his stuff, "Come on Reid if we hurry we can still make the last train!"

"Right. See you all tomorrow." He nodded as he followed her out of the glass doors.

* * *

><p>With a sigh Kaitlin unlocked the door to her condo, "Please don't start barking…please dear God don't start barking, not tonight." When she opened the door she was surprised that there was only the sound of the living room TV waiting for her and was overwhelmed by the smell of roses. After she let out a sigh of relief and locked the door, she headed towards the kitchen where she dumped her keys in the awaiting bowl, and she hung her coat on one of the chairs.<p>

"Mikey, puppies, I'm home." She called, but when she was only greeted the sound of the TV again her hand instinctively went to her gun but she pulled it back. "It's nothing they're just passed out…" She paused and shrugged, "It wouldn't be the first time."

She followed the hallway out of the kitchen to the living room but stopped when something squelched under her boot. She pulled out a latex glove and knelt without looking down while she pulled it on silently. She placed her finger down by the toe of her boot and pulled back when her finger scored a moist subject. She brought it to her face and looked at the substance on her glove. It was nearly black in the darkened house, so she brought it to her nose and sniffed. "Well it's not dog poop, thankfully." She rubbed the substance in between her fingers and it was almost a full liquid.

She analyzed the substance on her fingers again; this time it had left a residual trail where she rubbed her fingers together. That's when she realized what it was…blood. "Okay…no need to panic, perhaps Amarelle is just having her puppies and that's why they haven't responded…" The next thing that came to her mind wasn't said out loud, 'However pulling out your gun might ease your nerves just a little.' She stopped kneeling and looked around the condo as she pulled out her gun. As she looked around the hall she noticed something off. A couple batches of roses on the shelf just in front of her were different; there were two batches of red roses although she remembered it being one batch of red and one batch of white. When she concentrated on it more intensely she noticed that there was in fact one batch of red and a batch of white, only they were covered by some substance.

If she dared to move she would have come to the same conclusion that she had with the substance on her glove. It was blood…and probably a lot of it. She swallowed as she realized, her home was no longer a home. It was a crime scene.


	3. Chapter 3

(A/N: Yay Chapter three! Woot new chapter! Enjoy and please continue to review because I do love them so =D)

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds belongs to it's legal owners

Chapter Three:

Garcia answered her phone with a growl because she was finally about to get out of the BAU for the night. "Hello?"

There was a tense laugh on the other end, "What no witty Garcia for me? Though…I am glad you're still at the office."

"Oh Kaitlin! What's wrong?" Garcia asked suddenly worried.

"I'll explain later, once I figure out what exactly is wrong. But I need you to do me a favor." Kaitlin explained through clenched teeth, though Garcia could tell it wasn't because of her.

"Anything, just tell me what." She sat down at her computer ready to work her magic the moment Kaitlin spoke.

"I need you to send police and FBI techs to my condo right away. Everyone possibly available." She gasped.

"Why? What's with the gasping? What's wrong? Are you hurt?" Garcia asked as she began to panic.

"Garcia, sweetheart, I need to just do as I ask and as quickly as possible. My leg's starting to cramp up and if I move anymore then I'll contaminate the crime scene more then I already have." Kaitlin's voice was now tense.

"Alright. Should I call the others?" She asked.

"No. Let them rest. I'll explain everything when they come in tomorrow." Kaitlin scowled.

"Is that everything?" Garcia asked.

Kaitlin swallowed audibly over the phone, "I don't want to ask this, but if you could come and get me…that would be amazing…I don't want to be here with my home like this. Not anymore then possibly needed."

"Of course! I'll be there as soon as I can and I'll bring an army." Garcia told her.

"Thank you." She hung up the phone.

Garcia's fingers were faster than lightning as they dialed the number, "Hello. This is Penelope Garcia, from the FBI…"

* * *

><p>Garcia pulled up to Kaitlin's condo and saw the hoard of police and FBI vehicles parked out front. But the woman she was looking for was sitting on the front steps wearing only one boot and staring at the ring on her finger. She had her other hand clenched into her hair, that had fallen loose or the elastic had been pulled from it. "Kaitlin?" Garcia called as she approached.<p>

Kaitlin looked up with unshed tears in her eyes, "It's him…" She took a pained gasp, "I don't know how this happened. I took every precaution there is-was to keep him safe but…I made sure he knew to walk different paths every day. We never took the same path way twice in one week. He even made sure to drive to work a different way every time. So why did this happen? Why him?"

"Kaitlin…I'm so sorry." Garcia went to hug her but she was stopped by Kaitlin's head shaking back and forth.

"No. Don't. Please. If you console me now I'll break down. I-we can't afford that right now. Can you take me back to the BAU? I want to be there when the M.E.'s report and the crime scene photos come in. Now can we leave? They're planning to bring out his…" Kaitlin swallowed hard, "body."

"Alright let's go." Garcia could already hear the wheels of the gurney coming out. She watched as Kaitlin hopped towards her car. "Where's you're other boot?"

"It's officially evidence because I stepped in a blood pool." Kaitlin told her as she opened the passenger side door. She looked back to see Garcia's worried face being aimed at her. "Don't worry this boot is perfectly clean I'm not going to get Ester dirty."

"Oh okay…" Garcia was still looking at Kaitlin worriedly, but decided not to ask about it as she went to her car.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin sat nervously at her desk, waiting for the crime scene photos to come in. Everything screamed at her that this was a bad idea. Agent Anderson walked up behind her, "I have the photos you asked for."<p>

"Thanks Anderson." She opened the folder, and suddenly she was grabbing the sleeve of his jacket. "Are you sure that these are the right ones?"

"They're the ones from your condo, just as you asked." He looked at her confusedly.

She let him go and for a moment everything stopped. But in a blur she was suddenly dialing a phone number. "Hello? This is Agent Kaitlin Melrose, with the FBI. I need you to check on an inmate there. His identification number is one two seven nine. His name is Joshua Lankin. L-A-N-K-I-N. You need to check if he's still in his cell and you need to check this now."

There was a pause and all the remaining Agents at the BAU were currently looking at her. That's when she spoke again with a clipped tone of sheer annoyance, "Well, sir. If he is not in his cell then that means he's in Fredericksburg killing people." There was another pause, "Oh you want to know how I know it's him? I know it's him because I worked the God damned case he was brought in on. I was the one who caught him, and you know those nice little scars he has in his shoulder and his knee? I'm the one who put them there! So now I am going to ask you again, to please go check and make sure he is still in his cell before I completely lose it and drive down there and check myself!" There was a pause then she spoke again, "Yes I'm willing to wait."

The rest of the agents, now including Garcia, who had come to make sure Kaitlin was okay, were watching her. They all waited quietly as she waited, drumming her fingers on her desk. They watched as her impatient scowl turned into a frown, "Are you sure?" She asked and her voice went quiet. She sat down in her chair before she spoke again, "No, that's all thank you." She hung up the phone. That's when she looked at them, "What?" There was silence, "Alright I know I shouldn't have lost my temper. I'm sorry for distracting you from your work."

After she apologized she picked up her desk phone again and dialed another number. There was silence and then she spoke, "Detective Melrose please." The fight had left her voice.

She waited as her call was connected, "Melrose."

"Daddy?" She asked.

"Kaitlin? It's rare to hear from you. Are you alright?" His gruff voice made her feel strangely calm.

Garcia watched as Kaitlin's face lit up then quickly went back to sullen. She walked closer to listen to Kaitlin's conversation. "I'm sorry for calling you this late…or early depending on how you look at it. But I need you to do something for me."

Kaitlin listened to her father cough, "What is it?"

"I need you to bring me everything you have on that case. It turns out I was right after all…We caught an impostor. The Surgeon is back." She breathed the name like it was a sin as she rubbed her left collar bone.

"What do you mean? That's impossible! You caught the guy! We brought him in and he confessed to everything! He even knew the details of the case that were never released to the press!" He nearly yelled in her ear, but thankfully she pulled the phone away before he could do any serious damage.

"I know, dad. But there was another murder tonight; I've got the photos front of me to prove it." She looked down at the folder on her desk and opened it again.

"What? Where? In Washington? Who? Was it another girl?" She peeled the phone away from her ear again before he could shatter her eardrum.

"If you stop yelling I'll tell you." She paused but he remained quiet. She put the phone down on her desk to make sure nothing else happened to her hearing, "Thank you. So the most recent victim was…Mikey."

Her father's voice rang out clearly throughout the BAU office despite her volume being on a lower setting, "MOTHER-" Her hand snapped over the ear piece as her father's string of profanities continued.

She looked at the agents, "I'm sorry for his obscene behavior." They all waved it off. When her father's screaming seemed to cease she picked up the phone. "You done?"

"Yeah, I'll be down in about two hours." He hung up the phone.

She gently hung up her phone and she slumped. 'Now all you have to do is wait for your father to show up and then you can take a nap.' She thought to herself.

"Kaitlin…" Garcia brought her attention back to the blond currently standing behind her.

"Yeah?"

"One of the techs came back…and it seems like that neither Amarelle nor Raph were at your condo." Garcia cringed back.

'Okay…scratch that sleeping idea. FIND YOUR DOGS!' Kaitlin sat up, "What do you mean?"

"They weren't anywhere in the condo. They scoured the entire thing but they weren't there. I'm sorry to say, it was an easy job. Amarelle isn't a small dog; there weren't a lot of places left to hide once they were done." Garcia watched as Kaitlin's face lit up.

"Then that means that they could still be alive…Oh shit, what do we do? Amarelle's due any day now!" Kaitlin spun around in her chair and her head hit her desk with enough force that her vase almost fell over.

* * *

><p>Hotch walked into the BAU doors just after seven as usual, but this time there was something different about the situation. Garcia was waiting for him with dark circles under her eyes, "I thought I told you to go home and get some rest." He told her as he walked by.<p>

"Well, sir." The nervousness in her voice made him look at her, "Something's happened…"

"What? Is it about Foyet?" They began walking to his office.

"Um…no, sir. It's well…" She paused as they walked up the stairs.

"What is it, Garcia?" Walking at his pace, it didn't take them long to reach his door.

She cringed as he opened it, "It's about Kaitlin, sir."

He looked at the couch and the sleeping figure on it. He looked at Garcia, then back at the tuft of brown hair that was sticking out from under a blanket. "Is…Kaitlin sleeping on my couch?" He asked, sure he always made sure that his door was never locked but this is the first time he's walked in on someone sleeping on his couch. He looked at Garcia again then closed the door, "Okay, you have my attention, what happened?"

Garcia swallowed, "Well sir, she passed out. She was just waiting for you but when I went to check on her she was asleep, so I got her a blanket and pillow."

"I meant before that." He looked back at the office door.

"Well…last night, Kaitlin found Mikey's body in her condo; both Amarelle and Raph are missing. It seems she knows who the killer is…someone called the Surgeon." She told him quickly and paused to take a breath. "Everything they have on the case is in those boxes by your couch."

"Didn't they catch him?" He asked.

"It seems that it was a copycat…Kaitlin can explain it better. But please don't wake her up; she's barely had two hours as it is…" She pleaded.

"I won't, try to get some sleep for the next hour and then have everyone meet us in the briefing room when they arrive." She nodded as he silently opened the door to his office.

Kaitlin stirred as sunlight poured through the window, she rubbed her eyes and sat up. "Must have over slept…" She muttered to herself, "Mikey-" Memories of the previous night filled her mind and suddenly she was looking around. And then as she looked directly in front of her she found herself staring into the brown eyes of her boss. "Hotch!" He raised an eyebrow and she started stammering, "Umm…This isn't…okay it totally is. But…"

He put up a hand to stop her, "I know, Garcia told me."

"Oh…" Was all she could manage.

"So before we go to brief the team." He watched as her face lit up, "I want to ask you a couple of questions."

"Of course." She sat up straight and gave him her full attention.

"First: why wasn't the BAU called in eight years ago?"

"We were going to call you after the sixth murder, but…the night when my father and I were going to make the call and send you the files…we caught him. Or so I thought."

"You mean you caught him." He raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, sir…but I couldn't have done it without my father." She knew that certain parts of the files had been hidden, because they involved her and might have affected her career.

"Alright, second question: why do you think he switched victim types?"

"Because the girls weren't what he wanted or something about him changed…or his type…"

"What do you mean his type?"

"Hotch, the guy went from flat as boards twelve year old girls, to big…breasted women in their early to mid-twenties. That says to me that his taste in women changed in the course of a week…I know it doesn't make any sense but…"

"And what about Mikey?"

"It's his way of telling me he's back." She frowned.

He nodded, "And finally: Are you sure you can do this as a profiler and not as a person who's out for blood?"

"Hotch…" She looked at him meeting his eye contact fully, "I want to catch a guy who murdered six females and my fiancée because I want the families to have closure. But the moment you think my reasoning's changed take me off the case."

"Alright…have you notified his family yet?" He asked.

"I wasn't going to until you gave the okay…They're on their way anyway, you know to celebrate the engagement. So I'll call his sister and ask her to bring their parents here instead." She frowned.

"Do you want JJ to help you?" He asked as he began gathering the folders.

She shook her head, "No…I can do it. At least that way his mother will be lashing out at me and not another member of the team." She looked at him and smiled sadly, "I'm used to it."

He frowned, "Alright, go get cleaned up we'll meet in the briefing room in half an hour."

She got up and spoke, "Make it twenty minutes." He nodded and she walked out of his office.

She looked out into the bullpen and watched as the other members of the team were trying to make it seem like they weren't trying to figure out what was happening behind the closed door of Hotch's office, even Rossi was out in the bullpen trying to pretend like he hadn't been interested. She watched as Morgan handed him a file as she walked down the stairs. "You all need to learn to act better." She told them as she grabbed her go bag from under her desk and headed for the eastern bathroom where they had the showers.

* * *

><p>Reid waited on the bench outside the women's washroom tapping his foot nervously. When he looked up again he saw Kaitlin standing there, her lips pressed into a firm line until she spoke, "Kay. First and foremost, you're definitely not a person I expected to see waiting for me. Secondly, you waiting outside the bathroom would probably be creepy if you weren't you. And lastly, why aren't you at the bullpen?"<p>

He stood, "JJ told me you might be more willing to talk to me rather than one of the girls, though I'm not sure why."

"Because you're you." He looked at her confusedly, but she just shook her head. "Anyways there's nothing to talk about, I'm fine."

"Bottling up your emotions isn't healthy." He opened his mouth to speak some more but was cut off.

"Hotch is waiting for us," She looked at her watch, "and we've got just over two minutes to get there in time."

He frowned, "Why are you-" This time he was cut off for a different reason, she had placed her bag down and turned towards him. Her right index finger managed to slide its way in between the knot in his tie and his shirt. She pulled him towards her and their lips met briefly.

She pulled away and smiled when she saw the look on his face. He was blinking down at her obviously confused. "There…much better." She had wanted him to stop talking and it had worked. She unlaced her finger from his tie and grabbed her bag then he was left staring after her.

He watched as she walked away without looking back and he could nearly feel his brain turn back on. He felt blush cover his face as his mind screamed, 'WHAT JUST HAPPENED?'


	4. Chapter 4

(A/N: Woot chapter four! The case files are now revealed. Enjoy!)

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds belongs to its legal owners.

Chapter Four:

The others watched as Reid walked into the briefing room, "What's this? Dr. Reid is late for a briefing?" Kaitlin asked.

He shot her a glare as he sat down beside JJ. "Okay," Hotch started, setting the mood for room, "Whenever you're ready."

Kaitlin took a deep breath, "Eight years ago, Maryland had serial killer who called himself the Surgeon. He killed six females over the course of a month. The first three were three days apart each then after a week the second three were also only three days apart."

"Why did he stop killing after the first three kills?" Rossi asked.

Kaitlin shrugged, "I'm not sure…but when he resumed killing the victim type completely changed."

"How do you know it's not a copycat?" Morgan asked.

She bit her lip, "Because the specifics of the murders were never leaked to the public…"

"So you're telling us that no one leaked the story?" Prentiss asked.

"Well…the reason for that was because the first victim was the chief of police's daughter, twelve year old Emma Wellington." Kaitlin pressed a button on the remote and an image a twelve year old girl appeared on the screen. "The first three victims were all blond twelve year old girls with braces." She pressed the button twice more and two more twelve year old girls appeared on the screen. "However after that week his choice in victims completely changed. The next three victims were all brunettes in their early to mid-twenties with…well…" She clicked the button three more times.

Morgan raised an eyebrow and Rossi smirked. Prentiss made a noise while JJ shook her head and Garcia covered her chest protectively. "To be blunt they had big boobs." Kaitlin rolled her eyes. "He also started raping them on the fourth victim…"

"How'd you even know it was the same guy?" Morgan asked. "The victim type is completely different."

"It's because of what he did to the bodies." She looked at Garcia in a warning then pressed the button six more times and suddenly the profile shots they had of the females on the screen were covered by cut open empty corpses. Garcia cringed back as they noticed where the organs rested. "Every time he killed he circled the body with their own organs, it was his signature."

"Please tell me that was done post-mortem." Prentiss asked.

Kaitlin shook her head, "He drugged them with a narcotic combined with a muscle paralyzer…then as he dissected them they either bled out…or he gave them a mercy kill by cutting out their heart. The M.E. working the case told me that they probably didn't feel anything but they saw the entire dissection."

"So how do we know he's back out there?" JJ asked.

"Last night 1:17 another body was found, only this time it was male. The only identifier that it was the Surgeon was the fact that the organs were completely removed and were once again circling the body." Kaitlin swallowed hard as she clicked the button twice more, a profile shot appeared then it was quickly followed by another crime scene photo. "The latest victim is Michael Langley, thirty five and the only male victim. We're still waiting for his autopsy report."

"So why him?" Morgan asked.

She frowned, "Because my dad and I were the leading detectives on the case at the time, so he's probably telling us that he's still out there."

"Kaitlin, can you take those-those photos down now? I don't want to see them anymore." Garcia asked.

"Oh right sorry." She back clicked until there were only the profile pictures left on the screen.

Agent Anderson knocked on the briefing room door, "Michael Langley's family is here."

"Alright, take them to the conference room." Hotch told him as he looked at Kaitlin who nodded. "And Agent Melrose will be with them in just a minute."

Rossi looked at Reid, who was still staring at the first three victim's profile pictures. "What's eating you kid?"

Reid looked up, "It's nothing it's just that they remind me of someone I knew briefly during high school."

"Well that explains how they remind you of someone they were your age while you were in high school." Morgan told him.

"No at the time she was older…sixteen probably…and…" They watched as his face turned red as he continued, "she had…well…a chest."

"So you do actually notice those things?" Morgan asked as he ruffled Reid's hair.

The blush on Reid's face increased, "I was a twelve year old boy so yes I noticed." The men grinned as they remembered their youth and the women shook their heads.

"Hotch, I'm going to go talk to Mikey's family." Kaitlin told him and he nodded as the Morgan continued to tease Reid. She left before the others noticed but stopped when Morgan asked Reid whether or not the girl actually existed.

"I know she's real because I still have the sweater she lent me."

"Why do you still have it if it was only a loan?" JJ asked.

Kaitlin could nearly picture Reid pursing his lips together, "Because she disappeared before I could give it back to her."

With a sigh she began walking down hall towards the conference room and muttered, "I do miss that sweater."

She opened the door to the conference room and was greeted with the pacing of Loretta Langley, Mikey's mother. Phillip Langley, Mikey's father, sat in one of the chairs and Mikey's sister, Lucy, was leaning against the wall. Loretta stopped pacing when Kaitlin entered the room and closed the door. "Well, it's about time." Loretta told her.

"I'm sorry for making you wait; there were some things I still had to go over with my team. Loretta, Lucy you both might want to take a seat, I have something to tell you." She told them as she closed the blinds for the window that were facing the bullpen.

"Katie, is everything alright?" Lucy asked as she sat down but Loretta kept standing, "Mother, please sit down."

"No whatever it is she needs to tell us I can take it."

"That's fine." Kaitlin lips pressed into a firm line as she thought bitterly 'God I hate this woman.'

"So Kaitlin, tell us why you called us here of all places." Phillip spoke.

Kaitlin took a deep breath and looked at the floor while she formed the best possible way to tell them. When she looked up again her face was solemn, "I'm sorry to tell you this…but Mikey has…" She took a calming breath, "been killed."

"No!" Lucy's hands came to her mouth while her father looked down at his hands.

"You…" Loretta started and Kaitlin knew what was coming for her. Loretta raised her hand, "STUPID BITCH!" Normally this is where Mikey would have stepped in and taken the hit for her…but she knew it clearly, the moment Loretta's hand met her face, that Mikey was dead. "YOU GOT HIM KILLED DIDN'T YOU? I KNEW YOU'D BE THE DEATH OF HIM!" She raised her other hand and brought it down but this time Kaitlin caught it.

It took Kaitlin a total of thirty seconds to get Loretta's arm behind her back and have her front pressed against the table. "I'm going to remind you where you are and who I am right now so bear with me. We are in a federal building…and you just assaulted a federal agent. See I could get put in jail for that and believe me when I say if I didn't know you and you weren't the mother of my dead fiancé I would do it in a heartbeat. But luckily for you, you are Mikey's mother so I'm going to let you go, but I'm not so sure about my coworkers…what do you guys think?" She looked back at the seven now standing by the door.

* * *

><p>After Reid got a decent ribbing and everyone had their assignments they were all heading back to their desksoffices when they heard a SMACK coming from the conference room that Kaitlin currently had the Langley's in. Morgan and Hotch arrived at the door first but when Morgan opened it he noticed that Kaitlin surprisingly had everything under control. They all piled into the space by the doorway when they heard her speak. "But luckily for you, you are Mikey's mother so I'm going to let you go, but I'm not so sure about my coworkers…what do you guys think?" She looked back at them with an innocent smile on her face.

"What do you want to do? You're the one who got hit." Reid told her as JJ whispered "I'm going to go get a wet cloth."

"Honestly…let's just let her go, just because she's being a bitch, no offence," She looked at Phillip and Lucy who both just shrugged it off, "doesn't mean that I want her family to suffer." She let Loretta go and stepped beside Lucy who looked at Kaitlin's now swelling cheek with obvious worry.

"So this is it?" Loretta asked bitterly as she rubbed her arm, "You brought us here just to tell us my son is dead?"

"Would you have rather preferred to have gone to the condo just to find crime scene tape all over the front door?" Kaitlin snapped.

"And where were you when this happened? Off on another one of your quests of save the country?" Loretta snapped back.

Kaitlin glared, "Firstly, it's a mission to keep innocent people like you and Lucy safe! Secondly, we were in Boston solving a ten year old reopened case so that the thirty three people who were murdered could finally rest in peace! Finally, do you really think I was okay with leaving him alone all the time? I do this job because I am needed here not so I can have people like you bitch at me for doing that job!"

"And what about Michael? Did you ever stop to think that maybe the fact of him being with you was dangerous? My son is DEAD because of you!"

"DON'T YOU THINK I ALREADY KNOW THAT?" Kaitlin yelled back. "Because I do! You lost your son, but I lost my best friend, my lover and the reason I looked forward to a future this morning when I found his body! We were going to get married! We were probably going to start a family and you think I don't already know what I've done? That's why I'm going to make it up to him by finding the person who did this to him and catch him."

Loretta opened her mouth but Lucy stepped in front of Kaitlin and spoke, "That's enough mother. Anyways Katie, is this all you called us here for? Do you want me to answer some questions? Because if you want me to I'll drive these two to the hotel first, so they can check us in, then I'll come back."

"No I just needed to notify the family." Kaitlin whispered.

"Alright then, we'll head to the hotel." Lucy turned to stare at Kaitlin and the two shared a look.

"Mr. and Mrs. Langley I'll escort you out." Prentiss told them.

"Of course," Phillip nodded, "Come on dear." He tugged at his wife's arm forcing her to follow him.

"Do you two want a moment to talk?" JJ asked as she handed Kaitlin a wet cloth.

"Yes, please and thank you." Kaitlin told JJ as she placed the cloth on her throbbing cheek.

When the room cleared Lucy looked at Kaitlin once again and whispered, "You know who did it, don't you?"

Kaitlin lips pressed into a line again, "I know of who did it."

"What do you mean?"

"Do you remember eight years ago in Maryland?"

"Yeah, why?"

"My first case as a cop, you remember it right?"

"The string of murders: the three girls and the three women right?" Kaitlin nodded. "But I thought you closed it! You caught the guy! You even have the scar to prove it!"

"Shh! If my boss finds out I was almost a victim he'll never let me work this case." Kaitlin frowned.

"So where are you staying now that the condo's become a crime scene?" Lucy asked now more concerned about the dark circles under Kaitlin's eyes.

"Um…here on my boss' couch? Seems like the most probable place anyway. But at this rate I may have to…resort to caffeine if it comes down to it." Both of them cringed as they remembered their senior year in college.

Hotch knocked on the door, "Melrose, get your stuff together we're heading to the Maryland correctional facility we've got a meeting with Joshua Lankin."

"Yes, sir!" Kaitlin looked at Lucy, "I'm just going to escort Lu-I mean Ms. Langley out of here and I'll meet you by the elevator."

He nodded and looked at Lucy, "Ms. Langley, I'm sorry for your loss."

"Thank you, sir." She smiled sadly.

They waited until he left and then they walked out. Kaitlin led Lucy through the bullpen and to her desk where she grabbed her stuff. "Nice building…and it seems like an interesting job. Maybe I should reapply for the academy in the fall." Lucy grinned.

"Please don't…" Kaitlin pleaded.

Lucy looked generally shocked, "Why not?"

"Honestly there's a reason why you didn't get accepted the first time. Could you imagine it you, Garcia and I all working a federal job under one roof? The building would explode from a quirkiness overload." She finished collecting her bag and held her coat in her arms. She began leading Lucy to the elevators while everyone else bustled around.

"So…" Lucy started, "Who was cute looking guy?"

"Oh so that's what you're after…and you're going to have to be more specific…I work with a lot of good looking guys." Kaitlin grinned.

Lucy pushed her lightly, "Well he was pale, had shoulder length brown hair, a really innocent look on his face and looked far too young to be working at the BAU of all places."

"That's Reid, and he's twenty seven…now and no I am not giving you his number." Kaitlin looked at her seriously.

"That was Dr. Reid? You never said he was so…so cute…in a manly sort of way." Lucy let out a sigh.

Kaitlin's eyes narrowed, "Yeah there's a reason for that." They stopped at the elevator. "If you eventually want to ask him on a date…wait until this case is over because there can be a lot of complications if a victim's sister starts dating an FBI agent who's working the case."

Lucy frowned, "Yeah I know. I read the handbook before you did remember. I even was the one who suggested the BAU to you."

"I know and I'm even grateful for that it's just…FBI politics are complicated." Kaitlin let out a huff and then a moment later she let out a squeak of surprise as Lucy's hands groped her chest. "What are you doing?"

"You said that the last three victims eight years ago were all brunette's who probably all had braces when they were younger and big breasts. You've been a brunette since you joined the police force, you had braces when you were younger and you have big boobs, though you don't flaunt them. So I'm just worried about you, that's all." Lucy said with her hands still on Kaitlin's chest.

"That doesn't explain why you're still groping me now!" Kaitlin nearly cried, though that's when she heard a cough from behind them. The color drained from Kaitlin's face as she turned to see Hotch and Reid standing there. Hotch had a raised eyebrow and Reid was looking away completely with blush covering his face. "Um…this is…" She paused as Lucy's hand's fell away. "I actually don't have an explanation for this other then she's my best friend and it happens…"

"Hi! I don't think we've been properly introduced. I'm Lucy." She stuck out her hand and she and Hotch shook while Reid just gave a small wave.

"I'm Aaron Hotchner and this is Spencer Reid." The elevator bell rang and Kaitlin signaled the others to go first.

Hotch and Lucy went in first but Reid stopped to whisper, "You have strange friends."

She placed a hand on his back and led him into the elevator, "Yes well strange people tend to have strange friends."

* * *

><p>"Kaitlin," Hotch started as they walked through the underground parking lot to a company SUV. "I want you to get some rest on the way there. We'll need you at your best."<p>

"Um…yes sir, I know but can I ask why you're bringing it up?" She asked hesitantly.

"Because you're going to be heading the interview." His words echoed throughout the empty parking lot.

She stopped briefly before running to get ahead of them then she turned around and started walking backwards. "Are you sure about this, Hotch? In the four years you've had me on this team you've never…not once asked me to head an investigation."

"You're the only person who knows the case inside and out. You wrote half the reports, and you're the one who put this copycat away. You're the best person to get answers out of him." Hotch told her without looking up from his case file.

"I see…but you'll be in the room with me right?" She asked as he looked up to watch her turn.

Reid opened his mouth to warn her that she was about to turn right into a SUV but was too slow and she crashed right into the vehicle loudly. After a moment of shock she pulled away and held her nose. Reid looked at her, "Are you alright?"

She rubbed her nose, "I'm alright." She pulled her hand away from her nose and was relieved to find it unsullied by blood. "Sheesh…" She groaned as they got in, "Today is not my day."


	5. Chapter 5

(A/N: Investigative interviews, Strange younger siblings and the truths revealed! Oh my! Chapter five is now ready for your enjoyment! =D)

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds belongs to it's legal owners

Chapter Five:

"You know…this kind of worries me." Kaitlin told Hotch and Reid as they walked down the correction facility's hall.

"What do you mean?" Reid asked.

Her lips formed a frown, "Don't you remember what happened the last time the three of us went to interview an inmate together? Hotch nearly got into a fight."

"He was planning to kill us." Hotch told her.

She touched his arm for a brief moment, "I know, but this time let's all play nicely okay?" The guard stopped and she looked into the containment unit window. Her jaw dropped and she wondered aloud as the door started to open, "Oh my God he has a beard."

A rough laugh came from inside the cell, "Well it has been eight years Detective Melrose."

The sound of his voice sent chills up her spine and she swallowed hard as they walked inside. "Detective Melrose is my father; I'm with the F.B.I. now." She told him as she walked in.

"Hello, Mr. Lankin." Hotch spoke, "I'm Agent Hotchner and this is Dr. Reid we're with the Behavioral Analysis Unit."

"So Joshua, we're here to talk to about eight years ago." Kaitlin told him as she sat down.

"Let me guess the killings have started again, haven't they?" Joshua asked.

Kaitlin looked up at him, "What makes you say that?"

"What other reason would you come here for?" He asked.

"Sometimes we go straight to the source to figure out the reason why." She told him as she pulled out the folders which contained the crime scene photos for all six of the victims.

"Why? Hmmm, shouldn't you know the reason why better than anyone?" He paused then smiled, "Right, Kaitlin Louise Melrose?"

She paused but only for a second, "And why is that?"

"I can't tell you, now quit playing games. Who did he kill this time?" He smiled.

"He?" Reid asked.

"The true Surgeon." He looked at Reid for the briefest of moments and then brought his attention back to Kaitlin. "So tell me Agent Melrose who did he kill?"

She looked at Hotch for the briefest of moments from the corner of her eye and he nodded slightly. It was clear to her and Reid but to anyone else, who wasn't on their team, it would have looked like a small unconscious movement but to them it meant she was able to take out the crime scene photos with confidence. "I'd rather talk about the previous victims."

"Who? The women? They meant nothing to him." He told her with a smile.

"You mean these three, right?" She placed the profile pictures of the three women who were killed.

He nodded, "They were just toys to him, cheap knockoffs until he could get to what he really wanted."

"Toys? He drugged, raped and dissected them. And you're calling them toys?" She asked as she pointed to the picture on the left. "Lillian Matthews: she was supposed to be a bridesmaid in her sister's wedding which was happening a week after she was murdered." She pointed to the middle picture, "Kathleen Anders: she helped out at pet adoption centers and babysat the neighborhood kids, her parents told me she was going to open a daycare one day." She pointed to the final picture, "Abigail Winters: was about to graduate with a degree in teaching." She placed the photos of the crime scenes down, "He completely tainted them and yet you're calling them toys?"

He laughed quietly as if almost to himself, "Yes. He wanted the real thing but he couldn't have it, so he used these as replacements. And you can put those away; I was there when he murdered them so I remember everything probably more clearly than most people would."

"Then what about Emma Wellington, Alison Mackenzie and Cecilia Thomson?" She placed down the crime scene photos from the first three murders on the table and they watched as his smug grin went to a look of horror. "Were they all toys to him too? Three innocent girls were murdered and you're going to tell me that it's because they were toys to him?"

"He didn't say anything about them! He said he'd never touch kids!" Joshua cringed back from the photos.

"You've been in contact with him, how?"

"He sends letters but there's never a return address!"

She took a calming breath, "You two used to meet somewhere, where?"

"If I tell you he'll kill me!"

"Who would you rather take your chances with? Him? Or me?" The tone of her voice combined with the quietness of her threat caused the hair on the back of Reid's neck to stand up.

Joshua looked at her with wide eyes as he remembered what happened the night he was arrested. He instinctively rubbed his knee which still ached sometimes. "There was a flat in Silver Springs, on Edgewood & Eisner; he wrote that he still has it."

"We need an address." Hotch told him.

"One seventy nine apartment thirty one." They watched as Kaitlin's eyes widened just a touch.

Hotch nodded to the security guard at the door, "That will be all, thank you for your time Mr. Lankin." He gathered the pictures off the table and touched Kaitlin's shoulder to get her attention.

She stood, "Thank you for your time, Joshua. You've been a great help."

Reid walked out of the room first, then Hotch followed and when she turned to leave Joshua spoke. "You never told me who he killed." He opened his mouth in feigned shock, "Let me guess it was someone important to you." She paused, "Was it your friend? The blond one? What was her name again? Lucinda? No that's not quite right…Lucile? No wait I've got it. It's Lucy, isn't it?"

"Ignore him, Kaitlin. He can't hurt her." Hotch told her.

'It's not him I'm worried about.' She thought as she exited the cell.

* * *

><p>The moment they walked into the parking lot Kaitlin's phone rang and this time she answered it quickly, "Agent Melrose."<p>

"Katie?" Lucy asked her.

"Yeah, I'm here, love, what is it?"

"Since we left the BAU we've been sitting in our own rooms. And about ten minutes ago someone slipped an envelope under my door."

Kaitlin stopped walking and it caused Hotch and Reid to stop. "Okay, Lucy I'm putting you on speaker phone and you need to tell us everything." She pressed a button, "You've got me, Hotch and Reid."

"Alright, so I was sitting in my hotel room watching TV but then suddenly I heard a noise by the door. So I looked over and then there was an envelope with a red 'S' written on it, in what I think is blood, just sitting on the inside of my door, it had obviously been slipped under it. I went to check who put it there and there was a person wearing a black trench coat and hat walking towards the elevator. I chased after them but they got in so I took the stairs. When I got down to the main level, I saw him leaving but I lost him in the parking lot." Lucy told them in one big huff of breath.

"Did you see his face?" Hotch asked.

"No sir, I'm sorry." She sighed.

Kaitlin worried at her bottom lip, "What about the envelope?"

"It's still in the same spot, taunting me like Pandora's Box. What do I do?"

"Do not touch it, do you hear me? Do not touch it. You are a mime and that envelope has a box over it that's super glued to the floor." Kaitlin told her seriously.

"Roger."

"Ms. Langley we're going to send agents over to your hotel room but we're going to need your full cooperation." Hotch told her.

"Yes of course, sir." Lucy gave them the hotel name and her room number.

Kaitlin spoke again, "Lucy…one more thing before you hang up. Tell your parents to stay inside, just don't tell them why. I'd do it myself but your mother would probably listen to you better."

"Will do. Be safe, okay?" Lucy asked.

"I always am." She hung up.

Hotch looked at Reid, "Call JJ and Rossi, get them over to that hotel." He then looked at Kaitlin, "Call Morgan and Prentiss, tell them to get here as soon as possible."

She swallowed, "Sir, I know exactly where that flat is, I could get us there faster if I drove. I could also get us a place to stake it out until Morgan and Prentiss arrive. But it involves making some personal calls."

"Where?"

"Those apartments are right across the street from my parent's house." She admitted.

"Do it." He told her as he handed her the SUV keys which caused Reid to cringe.

* * *

><p>"Hey what are you complaining about? I got us here safely didn't I?" Kaitlin asked Reid as they got out of the SUV.<p>

"What part of that was safe?" He asked.

"The part where I drive better then you do." She pushed him gently and handed Hotch the keys as he got into the driver's seat. She dug her hand into her bag and pulled out another set of keys. She climbed the steps to the front door and as soon as the door was opened she ushered Reid inside. "Wait here." She headed for the garage and when she entered it she pressed the button for the garage door.

Hotch drove the SUV into the garage then got out, "Are you sure your parents are okay with us using the garage?"

"My mom said it was okay and believe me when I say in this house that's all that matters. Besides it's better that we keep the SUV hidden, you know, in case the unsub is actually across the street."

"Good idea." Reid told her from where he stood which was now directly behind her.

She jumped, "Damn it, Reid!"

"What?"

She sighed, "I think my dad still keeps his observation equipment in the attic, so I'll lead you to where we'll have the best observation point then I'll find the equipment then make you guys some coffee."

She watched as Reid's face lit up at the sound of coffee, but Hotch's scowl made for a good mood dampener, "That won't be necessary."

"No it is." She looked at him, "You're letting me a work a case I shouldn't even be remotely near. So making you coffee is the least I could do."

"Alright, so which room is the best place to set up?" He asked.

"My old room, follow me." She led them up the stairs. "How much longer until Morgan and Prentiss arrive?"

"About an hour and half." Reid told her. "They wanted to check out that envelope before they left."

She looked at her watch; it was currently 3:28, "So we'll be doing a five o'clock raid, roughly..." She opened the first door on her left then walked in and opened the curtains. "The window right across from us is apartment number thirty one."

"How do you know that?" Reid asked.

"Because Lucy used to live apartment number thirty three, which is the window to the left of it. I even had my own key until she moved, so trust me when I say I know."

Hotch looked at her, "And you didn't seen anything?"

"Nothing memorable. I've never seen anyone leave or enter that apartment." She let out a sigh, "I'm going to go get the equipment."

It only took her fifteen minutes to get the surveillance equipment but when she came back she found a tall blond haired boy standing outside her bedroom, just peering in. "What are you doing?"

"Watching real FBI agents work." He looked at her and had a smug grin on his face.

Her lips turned into a firm line, "Jake I've been in the FBI for four years now, when are you going to acknowledge that?"

Reid turned around to watch then whispered to Hotch, "Who's that?"

Hotch looked back and tried to find some connection between the two. That's when Kaitlin noticed them staring, "Ignore him." She told them as she walked into the room, "Surely he has homework to do." She set the suitcase on the floor and opened it. She began taking out parts of the telescope and setting them up.

"What are you doing with dad's surveillance equipment?" Jake asked from the doorway.

She turned, "Jake I swear to God if you do not get out of our way I swear I will drag you to mother and force you to explain why you're getting in the way of a federal investigation."

"I'd like to see you try, old lady." He stuck his tongue out.

She took off her gun and handed it to Reid, "Hold this." She got up and began cracking her knuckles as she began walked towards him. They all watched as the smug grin on his face turned into wide eyes and his lips parted as if he intended to say something but she spoke first, "Now what was it you called me? Old was it?"

"No ma'am! I didn't mean it, I'm sorry." He pleaded.

She raised an eyebrow, "Oh I'm sorry you're going to have to speak up, I'm old remember?"

There was another female voice that Hotch and Reid couldn't see, "Are you two at it again? I swear you're like children!"

"Says the person who procrastinates on her thesis paper." Both Kaitlin and Jake both said at the same time.

"Hey I'm not procrastinating; I am waiting for a good idea topic to come to mind." The voice told them.

"Yeah, yeah whatever. Anyways Steph can you take him down stairs he's distracting." Kaitlin crossed her arms.

"Sure, but where's your gun? I mean you can't sleep unless the thing's under your pillow so why aren't you wearing it now?" Steph asked.

"Reid has it." Kaitlin hitched her thumb into the room behind her. That's when they saw it, the face of a young woman, though hers and Kaitlin's facial structures were somewhat the same, Steph had blond hair like Jakes while Kaitlin had brown. The head quickly disappeared and Kaitlin was pulled away from the door.

Hotch and Reid heard whispering, "OMG who is he? He's totes gorgeous! Can you get me his number?"

Then they heard Kaitlin's voice, "They can hear you know. More importantly one of my bosses can hear you." Her voice made it clear that she was obviously unimpressed.

"Well can you at least say put in a good word for me?" Steph asked.

Kaitlin's head appeared in the doorway, "Reid my sister thinks you're hot." Hotch's palm met his forehead and Reid's face became a deep scarlet. She quickly moved from the doorway to talk to Steph again, "There are you happy now? Now both of you get downstairs! I'll be down in a bit to get a pot of coffee going."

"Do you want me to make it?" Steph asked, "It's probably no different than how dad makes his."

"Thanks, call me when it's done brewing." Kaitlin told her as she walked back into the room and to the surveillance equipment then started to finish the setting it up. "Sorry about that."

"They said 'dad'. Are they your siblings?" Reid asked as he placed her gun beside her.

"Yeah." She said as she focused on the telescope.

He bit his bottom lip, this would probably be his only chance to get to learn about her family life, sure he knew who her father was but so did all the other team members. "But they're so young."

"Well they're young. There's a ten year difference between Steph and I and fifteen years between Jake and I." She adjusted the focus knob a bit then looked into the telescope. "There we go. All set." She looked at Hotch, "Though…wouldn't he have packed up and moved."

Hotch shook his head, "No he sent you that message for a reason. He knew you'd go see Lankin for answers, so he probably knew you'd come here once you got them."

"Yeah but why me? Why am I so important to him?" She asked.

"Because in his mind you're the one who's going to catch him." Reid told her.

"And he's making a game out of it." She muttered bitterly.

* * *

><p>"So are we ready?" Morgan asked as he strapped himself into his FBI bullet proof vest. He and Prentiss had arrived just three minutes ago.<p>

"Yeah but the place seems empty." Kaitlin told him as she did up the last piece of Velcro on her own vest.

"How are we getting past the doors?" Prentiss asked.

"My dad got us some keys from the manager, said it was official business." Hotch and Morgan looked at Kaitlin, "Don't worry we'll give them back!"

"You ready?" Steph asked with her hand on the garage door button.

Kaitlin looked over at her, "Remember as soon as we're out, close both doors and lock them. Do not open them for anyone unless it's one of us." Steph nodded and pressed the button.

The garage door opened to reveal the orange sunset and they ran out. They crossed the street swiftly and in the course of a minute they were in the building. Kaitlin unlocked the security door and they headed up to the third floor where apartment thirty one was. Morgan was in front and Hotch was in the back with Prentiss and Reid on either side of Kaitlin. She clenched the extra keys in her hand so that they didn't jingle when she unlocked the apartment's door.

Morgan went down the hall that lead to the kitchen. Prentiss and Reid went towards the living room and bathroom. Kaitlin and Hotch got the bedrooms; they looked at each other and nodded before opening the doors simultaneously. "Clear!" Morgan called.

"Clear!" Prentiss and Reid called at the same time.

"Clear!" Kaitlin called.

"All clear!" Hotch called from the room beside hers.

She looked around the bedroom, if it could be called that. The only symbol that it was a bedroom was the bed off in one corner. That's when she noticed a folded cardboard shrine complete with, currently, unlit candles. She pulled out a glove, put it on and unfolded the cardboard. What she saw made her gasp and her legs gave out from under her.

That's when she heard Joshua Lankin's voice. "_Shouldn__'__t you know the reason why better than anyone?_" His smug grin covered her vision, "_No wait I__'__ve got it. It__'__s Lucy isn__'__t it?_" Why hadn't she seen it? "_They were just toys to him, cheap knockoffs until he could get what he really wanted._" She couldn't breathe. "_Kaitlin Louise Melrose._"

"Melrose?" Hotch asked.

Her voice wouldn't come out so she just pointed. She looked at the many pictures on the cardboard again and her heart started to speed up in fear. She still couldn't remember how to breathe. They had died because of her. They had died because they looked like her. Mikey had died because he was her lover. She hadn't even heard Hotch call out for the others but when Reid came over to her she began fighting to get her vest off. They were talking but she didn't hear a thing they said. The only thing that mattered was that she got that vest off; they had to know what happened the night she caught Lankin.

When she had the Velcro off she yanked the thing over her head threw it then tore at the left side of her blouse. The first two buttons snapped off and went flying but that didn't matter as she slipped her fingers under the bindings, that held and bound her chest, and she pulled. She knew what the others were seeing, a pale white scar running from the end of her shoulder down to the curve of her breasts.

"I was…" She took a ragged breath, "the Surgeon's object of affection…" She told them as she put the pieces together, "But Lankin was jealous, so he took up the Surgeon's blade and tried to take me out of the picture…"

"Reid," Hotch's words finally got through to her ears. "Take her back to her parent's house, we'll call for a forensic team and then we'll go from there."

"Right." Reid helped her up and he managed to get her to put her vest back on then he lead her outside.


	6. Chapter 6

(A/N: Woot Chapter six. How exciting! So you know how it's labeled romance as a genre...we're finally getting into it during this chapter Yay! =D)

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds belongs to it's legal owners

Chapter Six:

Hotch, Morgan and Prentiss looked at the photos, it wouldn't have taken a profiler to know who they were from Kaitlin's reaction. They were pictures of her from her preteen years up until they went to Boston. "Hey, it looks like there's a few of them missing." Prentiss told them.

"That explains where the photos came from." Morgan rubbed his chin.

Hotch looked over at them, "What photos?"

"We didn't want to tell you with Kaitlin in the room." Prentiss told him, "But the envelope that Ms. Langley got was filled of photos of her and Kaitlin."

"So now that we know what he's after, how do we catch him?" Morgan asked.

"We start treating this like a stalker case rather than a murder investigation." Hotch told them, "But first we need to get her some place safe."

* * *

><p>Reid watched as Kaitlin paced back and forth in her parent's living room, "So what you're telling me is that Lankin is…gay?" He asked.<p>

"Oh come on boy genius think about it." Kaitlin grabbed a lollipop off the table and unwrapped it. "He was jealous to the point of wanting to kill me; you don't do that unless you're in love. It also explains why he wanted those crime scene photos to be taken off the table. It made him uncomfortable to see naked women. And if Lankin and the unsub were in fact lovers, it would explain why he was willing to give up valuable information about where their hide out was." She looked over at Reid.

"Uh…no that's probably because you're a terrifying person." He avoided her eye contact as he said it.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" He raised an eyebrow and she let out sigh. "Exactly how it sounded." That's when she paused in her pacing, "I have a bisexual stalker…" She nodded as if to herself, "Hot."

"Are you taking any of this seriously?" Reid demanded.

She placed her hands on the coffee table that separated them and she leaned over, "If I start taking this job as seriously as Hotch or Rossi I'll go insane. So I'll treat this case as seriously as any other case we've worked."

"So with reckless abandon?" He asked as he took a sip of his coffee. But when he pulled the mug away, he stared at her. "What are you going to do if we can't catch the guy?"

"Live a life of celibacy until he makes a mistake then bring him in." She raised an eyebrow when he blushed.

"Gag! I really don't want to hear something like that from my sister." Jake walked in with a mug. "Mom wanted me to bring this to you."

"What? Sex is a perfectly natural thing; I mean how else were you born?" She asked as she took the mug from him and suddenly as Reid watched them he knew that this was why she teased him. "Thanks." She raised her mug then ruffled Jake's hair, "You know you can be alright sometimes, kid. Now go keep mom company." He turned to walk back into the kitchen when she spoke again, "Hey. You and Steph both know I love you right?"

He tried to answer but his voice cracked, so he coughed and tried again, "Yeah we know." He left the room.

When Reid was sure he was out of ear shot he spoke, "That seemed kind of final."

She looked over at him with a look he couldn't read and she put her mug onto the table, "Stalker cases never end well."

Hotch, Morgan and Prentiss walked in, "Grab some things we're getting you out of here." Hotch told her.

"Oh! Okay! Just let me grab some clothes…but where are we going?" She asked.

"A safe house." Morgan told her.

"Um alright. But wouldn't the BAU be safer?" She asked as she headed to the stairs.

Prentiss shook her head, "He knows where that is. It'll be safer if we hide you some place more secret." She caught up with her as they ascended the stairs.

"Reid." Hotch looked at him.

"Yes, sir?" He asked.

"You'll be her assigned agent for protection."

Morgan and Reid both looked at him, "But I'd be more use to you at the BAU besides Morgan's much better at the whole protection detail then I am."

"You're presence there will help her relax. She'll be able to give more details when she relaxes." He told her as Kaitlin and Prentiss came back down the stairs with a small backpack. He looked at her, "You ready?"

"Yes, sir." She nodded.

"Good let's get going."

* * *

><p>Hotch and Morgan took the first SUV then five minutes later Prentiss, Reid and Kaitlin were on the road to Quantico. On the two hour long car ride, Kaitlin had found out five things. The first was that Reid was going to be on protective duty while Prentiss canvassed area. The second thing she learnt was that there would always at least one extra agent at the safe house with them. The third thing that she learnt was that Rossi and JJ were keeping an eye on Lucy in case anything else happened. The fourth thing was that Prentiss, when on a mission, was very careful about being followed. They spent an entire hour driving around the town just to make sure they weren't being followed. And the final thing she learnt was that everyone was far too serious about this.<p>

"You know…" Kaitlin started as they drove to the safe house, "I'm impressed to find out Quantico actually has safe houses."

"Of course it has safe houses. Why wouldn't it?" Reid looked at her.

She raised an eyebrow, "Tell me Dr. Reid what exactly does Quantico need to use a safe house for?"

"Obviously FBI agents who don't realize they're being stalked." He went back to looking ahead.

"More importantly, how does a member of the BAU not notice they're being stalked?" Prentiss asked.

Kaitlin tilted her head to the side and thought about it for a bit, "I don't know…but there were pictures there from when I was in junior high so maybe it began felt normal to me." She paused, "And if that doesn't work it's because I'm a ditz."

They both nodded their heads as Prentiss drove into a back alley and behind a house. "Go, there should already be agents waiting inside for you." Prentiss told them as they got out and she drove away, probably to find a place to store the SUV, until Hotch and Morgan showed up.

Reid looked at the fence and noticed that it was too tall to unlock from the outside, but the look on Kaitlin's face made him worry. She backed up until she was against another fence and then took a running start. She jumped high enough that her hands scored the top of the fence and with the momentum of the jump she pushed herself up and over. He heard a small thump then a click of the lock coming undone. When the gate opened he saw her grinning and her chest heaving. She froze when she heard the safety of a gun unlock.

"Freeze! Don't move!" They heard a man yell.

"We're FBI." Reid called as he put his hands up. "I'm Dr. Spencer Reid and this is Agent Kaitlin Melrose."

"I want to see your credentials. The girl will grab yours, then hers." The man demanded and she raised an eyebrow at being called girl.

"Which pocket?" She asked quietly.

He flushed softly, "Back left."

She looked up at him, "Are you serious?" He nodded and she sighed. Her right hand slipped behind them and in a moment she was holding Reid's credentials without him even noticing.

She handed him his badge and he stared down at her, "How did you even? My back pocket was buttoned up!"

She grinned and called out, "He has his credentials, now I'm grabbing mine." She moved her left hand behind her and it brushed her gun unconsciously but she bypassed it completely then reached into her back left pocket. She pulled out her own badge and handed it to Reid who opened it. She heard the agent walk over and felt his presence behind her as he looked at the two badges.

There was a laugh, "Sorry about that…it's just that we weren't expecting you to climb in from the back." She turned around and he continued to talk. "I'm Agent Fredrickson, I'll be with you tonight and Agent Marks will be here tomorrow." He and Reid watched as she nodded then headed off back behind the fence. "Where's she going?"

She came back with her go bag halfheartedly thrown over her shoulder and the backpack from her parents place on the other one. Reid looked at her with a frown, "I could have grabbed them."

"It's alright, I've got them." She walked towards the back door and opened it.

"That's not the point! The point is that you have a homicidal stalker following you." He told her as he followed her into the safe house as Agent Fredrickson closed the gate and locked it again.

"Well he hasn't killed me yet, has he?" She looked back at them briefly then walked inside

He followed her inside then up the stairs, "Yet being the operative term." He told her. "You do understand the seriousness of this, don't you?"

She turned around to face him, "Reid, I haven't slept properly since we left for Boston. Right now all I'm thinking about it how there's a bed and shower waiting for me somewhere inside this building and the moment I find them, I'm going to take a nap. Then when morning hits I'll wake up and shower properly then we'll talk about the seriousness of this situation. So until then, please, ease off."

He looked up at her then looked away, "Right…sorry."

There was a noise that sounded like a phone shutting down and she pulled the sleeve of her coat back enough to look at the purple communicator that Reid had given her. "It's been doing that a lot." She pressed a button but this time the screen remained blank.

"Oh the battery's just dead. It'll charge in an hour or two." He looked away then back at her, this time more sincerely, "Sleep well?"

"Thanks." She flashed a smile at him then turned around and climbed up the rest of stairs.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin rolled over for what must have been the hundredth time that night then with a sigh of exasperation she sat up. She ran her hand through her hair then as she fought a small battle with frustration she threw off the covers and walked into the bathroom. She splashed cold water on her face then stared into the mirror. She heard Reid's voice replay in her head, "<em>You do understand the seriousness of this, don<em>_'__t you?_"

Her hand slammed down against the laminate of the counter, "Of course I do!" She let out a breath, "Even when he's not in the room he's still lecturing me." With a sigh she walked over to the tub and sat on the edge. She lightly turned on the cold water then let it run over her hand which was already starting to turn red. When the stinging had stopped she began to strip as she tested the hot water. Then when the temperature was right she got in and took a long shower.

When she finally got out, she wrapped a towel around her then went to her go bags. She delved into the bottom of her duffle bag and pulled out a roll tensor bandage. Then with a sigh she pulled out one of the few bras she owned and thought about wearing it which quickly brought the thought of binding her chest again for the second time that day. That one thought made her choice; she quickly put the bra on and did the clasps up before she could change her mind then threw the tensor bandage back into the bag. She then threw on a black lace camisole and with it she decided to throw caution to the wind because at this point it didn't matter what she wore because she doubted anyone would bother her now. She slipped on a pair of panties then pulled out a jean skirt, with a belt already through the belt loops, and after she walked over to the bed she placed the skirt at the edge of the bed just so that it was ready for when she woke up.

When there was a knock on the door she quickly kicked the skirt under the bed and then pulled the covers up so that she had them bunched over her chest. "Come in." She called.

Reid opened the door, while holding two mugs in one hand but he paused in the doorway. He looked her over and was in awe; her wet brown hair fell past her shoulders and from what he could see it was curling into little ringlets. She wasn't wearing makeup so he could see the dark circles under her eyes but he could also see the natural flush that covered her cheeks. Then suddenly he was staring into her storm cloud grey eyes and the only word that came to him mind was 'Beautiful.'

"Reid?" She asked as his mind drifted to someplace else.

He blinked then shook his head, "Sorry what?"

"Is everything alright? Did something happen?" She asked as he avoided eye contact.

"No, nothing happened everything is fine. It's just I heard the water running and I thought that maybe you couldn't sleep so I brought you some tea." He walked over.

He handed her one of the mugs and she smiled, "Thanks." She took a sip, "Oh! It's sweet."

"Did I mess up?" He asked, suddenly worried that his profiling skills were failing him.

She looked up at him, "No it's good." She then patted the area of the bed beside her, "Sit. I know this isn't the only reason why you came up here."

He sat down, "Am I that obvious?"

"Only a little bit. So what is it?"

"Are you alright?"

She smiled sadly and she looked into her tea to avoid his gaze, "I'll be fine."

"That's not what I asked and you know it." He paused, "Internalizing makes it worse you know."

"Have you been attending those 'How to deal with stress lectures' at the academy again?" She asked but didn't take her eyes off of her tea.

He paused, "Yes…yes I have and one of the first things we learnt was that if you don't have an outlet for your problems they'll just keep building and building up inside of you until they explode which will then in turn cause you to lash out at your friends and family."

She let out a sigh, set her mug down on the nightstand then looked up at him with unshed tears in her eyes, "Reid, if one of the victims hadn't been Mikey…I might have been able handle it. Finding out I've been being stalked since I was twelve is no big deal…but people died because of me and I didn't even know it! Mikey was killed because he was with me!" She gasped and her hands covered her mouth as she realized something, "Oh God…what if he was still alive when I arrived and the last thing he saw was his killer…when I was in the building! What if he died with the image of his organs being removed when he could have seen me instead?"

'And now she's panicking. Good job Dr. Reid.' He thought sarcastically but realized that there was a more pressing matter at hand. He gently placed his hands on her face and forced her to look at him, "Kaitlin." She tried to pull away but he stayed strong then his gaze caught hers. "Look at me." When she stopped struggling, he spoke again, "He died while we were still in Boston there was nothing you could have done."

"But that doesn't make it okay! I should have called in sick or something! I should have been there with him!"

"Then you'd both probably be dead right now! Then what? What would happen to Amarelle, Raph and their puppies?" He demanded.

She froze, how had she forgotten about Amarelle and Raph? They were her pets, her comfort and most importantly trained well enough to get the newspaper in the morning. Her hands fell to into her lap and for just a moment everything shut down. She didn't want to think anymore, she wanted to forget. Most importantly she wanted to feel good again, to be able to think about why she does the job that she does without worrying about all the negative things and all the death that they face wouldn't tear her to pieces like it was now.

So she did the only thing she could think of, she used his tie to pull him to her and she kissed him. He closed his eyes and kissed her back until he realized what he was doing. He pulled away enough so that he wasn't touching her at all, "This is…I don't even know what this is! Is this transference? What is this?"

She looked at him, "It's not transference…it's comfort, I want to remember that what we do is good." She swallowed, "Please Spencer."

Hearing his first name come out of her lips shattered what little resolve he had left after hearing the pleading in her tone. For the first time since she joined the team four years seven months and eight days ago she called him by his first name and it broke everything he stood for as a gentleman. He kissed her with as much determination as she had kissed him.

Their short innocent kisses turned into longer opened mouth kisses. He wouldn't have noticed the tears that slid down her cheeks if they hadn't changed their way of kissing. His hands moved up to her cheeks again and gently brushed the tears away. The hand that she used to pull his tie towards her found its way into his hair, which was surprisingly soft for a man's hair.

When they separated to breathe, though they kept their foreheads together, he whispered. "Katie…" That's when they both froze.

She pulled away enough to look into his eyes and any doubts he had about saying it disappeared when he saw the smolder in her own. She grinned, "Say it again."

He looked at her just so he could remember this moment for the rest of his life. Her eyes glittered with fresh tears but underneath those was a burning that threatened to cook him from the inside out if he wasn't careful, which he strangely found exciting rather than terrified feeling he usually got gazing into them. Her lips were kiss swollen and not even for a moment did he doubt his lips were any better. The blanket she was using to cover herself up was now pooled around her waist and her chest heaved from the lack of oxygen. "Katie." He whispered again, more confidently this time.

She kissed him but only this time his hand found where hers still rested on her lap and he interlaced their fingers. Her tongue brushed his lip as if asking permission before continuing. His tongue met hers and the two battled for dominance which he was winning, surprisingly. Finally she relented and he began exploring her mouth. When his tongue brushed the roof of her mouth she let out a small moan.

The moment she made that noise she began pulling back slowly, so as to not hurt his feelings. He got the message when she unlaced their fingers. When they weren't touching anymore she spoke, "Okay don't get me wrong…you're an amazing kisser. But at this current moment I really don't think this is a very good idea or at least going any farther would be a good idea."

"Then why did you even start this?" He asked.

She smiled sadly, "Comfort…I told you. Besides…that's not why I'm stopping us. The truth is there's another agent in this building and if he heard us…the first two people who'd find out would be Morgan and Hotch and you and I both know how that would end." She watched him flush at even the remote prospect of Morgan finding out anything that happened with a girl behind closed doors.

"You're right…" He sighed, "Good call." He watched as she covered up a yawn. "You should probably get some rest."

"Right…" He got up and she began to lie down but grabbed his hand when he started to head towards the door. He looked at her as she curled under the blankets. "Come lie down with me?"

"Are you sure? I mean I am supposed to be out there." He pointed towards the door.

"At least until I fall asleep." They smiled at each other and he walked around to the other side of the bed but didn't crawl under the blankets when he lay down. He managed, despite the small size of the bed, to keep any of their body parts from touching, except for the arm that she now held captive around her waist. It didn't take long for her to start falling asleep, but before she passed out she spoke, "Hey Spencer…"

"Yeah." His free hand played with a loose lock of curls.

"I'm sorry I'm so weak." She told him as she delved into a world full of dreams.

He didn't move until he was sure she was fully asleep. Then he whispered as quietly as he could, while slipping his hand out of hers, "I don't think you're weak." He slipped the communications device from where it had finished charging onto her wrist then quickly left the room after grabbing both mugs still full of their drinks.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin awoke when she heard a thump; she pulled her gun out from under her pillow and then reached for her skirt under the bed. The moment she found it she hopped into it and did up the belt before getting to the door. She stuck her holster on the side of her belt and pulled out her gun as she opened the door. The moment she did she wished she had a flashlight because the hallway was darker than a moonless night. She walked down the hall with her back against the wall so she had a view of where she was going and where she came from. She prayed silently that her night vision wouldn't fail her now as she headed to the kitchen where a faint light was coming from.<p>

She silently snuck up to the wall closet to the entrance and then looked inside for the briefest of moments to see Reid being pinned to the ground by another person, wearing a black hat and trench coat. She noticed blood in Reid's hair and that was all she needed. She fired into the room, passing through the rim of the Surgeon's hat. "Get off of him." She told him.

"No…" She heard Reid's voice as she saw a syringe in the Surgeon's hand pressing into Reid's neck. "Kaitlin, run."

She knew instantly what was in the syringe the moment she saw it. It was the combination of a narcotic and muscle paralyzer. "That last shot was a warning, so either get off of him or die. You've been stalking me for almost twenty years now…you should know by now that I never miss, unless it's on purpose."

"You can't kill me before I inject him with this." The Surgeon told her.

"No! Don't please!" She pleaded, "Alright, I'll make a deal."

"No." Reid told her.

The Surgeon didn't look away from Reid while he spoke, "I'm listening."

"I'll put my gun down, I'll go with you, but just please don't inject him with that and let me call for a medical team for the wound to his head." She told him.

He signaled for her to toss her gun over by the kitchen table away from Reid and she did. Only then did he get off of Reid while grabbing his gun. He walked over to her gun and picked it up. He then signaled for her to use Reid's cell phone.

She called Garcia, "Garcia can you send an EMT over to the safe house?" She prattled off the address.

"Kaitlin? What's wrong?" Garcia asked, "Where's Reid?"

"He's holding the phone to my ear; I accidentally injured my hand when I slipped in the shower. It's cut pretty badly but it's nothing bad enough for you to worry about. Just get someone over here so that it doesn't get infected." She said as she looked at Reid's head.

"Alright. It'll be there in a jiffy. Garcia over and out." Garcia hung up the phone.

Kaitlin looked at Reid's head once more, the only thing she saw was a blow to the head that would probably give him a concussion for a day or two. She looked at him and whispered, "Don't worry everything's going to be alright." She got up and looked at her stalker, "Let's go."

"I was hoping you'd say that." He walked over to her and the next thing she knew there was a sharp stabbing in her neck and she was being lifted off of her feet. "Now let's go."

The last thing she saw was Reid's face staring in horror and just before she blacked out she whispered, "Sorry." Then her world went blank.


	7. Chapter 7

(A/N: Yay chapter seven! Kaitlin has been kidnapped by the mysterious Surgeon! Who is he? And what connection does she have to him? Read and find out =D)

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds belongs to it's legal owners.

Chapter Seven:

"Reid what happened?" Hotch asked as he, Morgan, JJ and Rossi walked in as the morning light poured through the windows.

"I'm not sure, Hotch." Reid took a breath, "One minute everything was fine but then I heard a noise…"

"Probably Fredrickson being knocked out." Morgan told him.

"Is he going to be alright?" Reid asked, as his head throbbed.

"He'll be fine besides the initial blow he wasn't injured." Hotch told him, "I doubt he meant anything to the unsub."

"How did he even know where we were?" Reid asked.

Rossi's lips pressed into a firm line, "The call she made to Garcia from your cell phone? She did list off the address during it and you can get a cell phone interceptor at any electronics' store."

"It happened after she made the deal with him. He already knew where we were, he probably knew all night." Reid told them.

"That's impossible; I made sure we weren't followed." Prentiss told them.

"You're sure?" Hotch asked and when she nodded he pulled out his cell phone, "I'll be back, I need to call the head office…all our safe houses may have been compromised." He left the room.

"So what exactly made her make a deal with him?" Rossi asked.

Morgan looked at him, "Oh come on Rossi, the woman is a saint when it comes to her friends."

"That explains why he attacked me." Reid told them, "He could have just snuck by and I wouldn't have noticed." He paused, "If he had just gone to her bedroom without a hostage…she would have at least shot him."

"Come on kid, you couldn't have known that he was here. Quit giving yourself a hard time." Morgan told him.

"I could have! That's what's bothering me! If I hadn't been distracted she wouldn't be out there with some homicidal stalker rapist!" He ran his hand through his hair and winced when he accidentally brushed his wound.

The four in front of him shared a look, "Did something happen, Reid?" JJ asked.

He felt blush cover his face as he remembered what happened in the bedroom and Morgan grinned, "Oh so something did happen."

Rossi raised an eyebrow then decided to walk out of the room. He decided that it would have been easier for the younger profilers to talk in case Reid revealed something that would tie his and Hotch's hands.

"Nothing happened!" Reid exclaimed.

"You're a genius when it comes to profiling, kid, but you're a terrible lair." Morgan told him.

He pursed his lips then thought of a feasible lie, "What? Nothing happened! At least not anything you're thinking of. She couldn't sleep so I brought her some tea and we ended up talking until she started falling. Then she asked me to stay until she was…" He remembered something, "asleep…"

"Reid?" Prentiss asked as he got up. They followed him up the stairs and into the bedroom. He scanned around the bed area and eventually ended up shaking out the blankets. "Reid!" Prentiss called again.

His eyes widened, "She still has it on."

"Has what on?" JJ asked.

"The wrist communicator that Garcia and I made for her. She still has it! I put it on her after she fell asleep just in case." He began pacing the room, which wasn't helping his concussion any.

"So what's your point, she can't use it if she's drugged." Morgan told him.

"But we can contact her or at least Garcia can!" Reid told them as he began heading down the stairs. "We need to tell Hotch."

* * *

><p>Kaitlin heard a beeping through the fog that the narcotics had created. It was currently the most annoying beeping she had ever heard. Her hand twitched which meant that the muscle paralyzer was wearing off causing her to try to move her body. She managed to wiggle her hips a little, that's when she heard the rattling of chains and that was what shattered the fog that blanketed her mind. Her eyes snapped open and she was in a dimly lit room. Everything still felt like it was made of lead, but she fought it. She fought until she found where her hands were resting and there they were sitting on her lap but when her eyes drifted to her wrists she saw shackles attached to a chain.<p>

That's when she really started to struggle but when the shackles bit into her skin hard enough to draw blood she stopped. She hadn't even realized that the beeping that had woken her up had stopped. She looked at the shackles more closely and in the dim light she saw the location for a key. "This isn't funny." She breathed heavily. If there was one thing in the entire world she was afraid of, it was being chained or tied up or the lack of control of her own body that happened whenever this sort of thing happened. 'It wasn't funny the first time it's not funny now.' She tugged on the chain a bit more but nothing changed, 'Goddamn it! Why does this bullshit always happen to me?' That's when the beeping started again.

She looked up and around when she noticed a flashing purple light in front of her. It was just above her line of sight but she saw it clearly. She tried to stand but her hips wouldn't lift up. With a groan she placed her arms out in front of her and leaned against them as she began to crawl towards what she assumed was a table. It wasn't until she tried to move her legs interchangeably did she realize that her ankles were bound together. "Seriously?" She snapped.

When she almost got into arm's length reach of the table her chain reached the end of its length. "No!" Her hands slammed down onto the floor, "So close! So friggen close!" She let out a breath, "And now I'm mad." She turned back to the way she came and put her arms out in front her as far out as possible. She felt some of the tension in the chain ease though it was very little. She inched back slowly until the tension was back to being full length again then once it was she slowly turned her body as far as it would go, then after that she turned her head for an almost complete straight line going from her fingertips to the tip of her nose.

She finally saw what was causing the flashing and the beeping. It was the communicator Reid had given her. She didn't even know that she had it on when she offered herself to the Surgeon. She reached for the strap that was hanging over the edge with her teeth. When it was just in her reach she lurched forward and hit her head on the table. Something must have moved on that table because it lit up like a Christmas tree.

For a moment her world went blind as the lights ruined her night vision. When the light seemed to dim she blinked rapidly then finally she decided to look up. That's when she saw it, four different screens all lit up and all four screens were flashing with different images of her. As she watched the, surprisingly flattering, pictures she missed the fact that the beeping and flashing light of her communicator stopped again.

It only took a couple of minutes for the beeping to start up again which snapped her attention back to the now swinging communicator strap. As she centered herself again she timed the seconds in between the swings of it. Then as it approached her, she lunged again only this time she scored the strap between her teeth but fell to the floor with a sickening pop coming from her shoulder. She bit into the strap harder to keep herself from screaming. She sat up slowly as she winced in pain then slid into a more comfortable position where her wrists weren't digging into the metal shackles. Then finally she opened the purple lid and pressed a button. "Hello?"

"Kaitlin?" Garcia's voice came through the speaker though there was a lot of distortion from static.

"Oh…that's what that beeping was. You were calling me? Reid should have…Oh God! Garcia! Is Reid alright?"

She heard some sounds in the background. The first was a call for the others; the second was the sounds of more shouts from various voices, then finally the sound of many footsteps and the door slamming open. The thought of everyone piled into Garcia's tiny office made her laugh, despite the fact that she felt bad for their technical analyst.

"Melrose? Are you alright?" Hotch's voice came through the communicator.

"Kind of…" She paused, "I think my shoulder dislocated itself while I was trying to get to this thing." She waved the communicator. "So is anyone going to tell me if Reid is alright?"

"I'll live." He told her.

"And Agent Fredrickson?" She asked.

"He'll be alright." Hotch told her but then asked, "What do you see?"

For the first time since the computers lit up she looked around, "I see computers, four laptops. I see a video camera, though it's off and I see cages…lots of cages."

"What kind of cages? Are there other people there?" Morgan asked.

"No, they wouldn't fit more than a medium sized dog comfortably." She closed her eyes and sniffed then quickly gagged. "It smells terrible in here…but…somehow nostalgic."

"You know the place?" Hotch asked her.

"No just the smell, though I can't remember where." She rubbed her head and pulled a slick hand away. It was almost covered in blood. "Ah man…I think I cut my forehead."

"What did you do?" Prentiss asked.

"Lunged without calculating." She turned back to the computers and video camera. "Wait did you guys grab my duffle bag from the safe house?"

"Yeah, why?" JJ asked.

"Because I just got an idea." She grinned but then began removing her belt, "But first things first."

"Melrose what are you doing?" Hotch asked.

"Don't worry; I know what I'm doing." She placed the belt in her mouth and bit down hard. 'Okay, Kaitlin. This is no different than that time when you popped your shoulder back into place during high jump practice.' She thought to herself. 'Yeah over a decade ago!' Her mind screamed back in terror though she ignored it and yanked her arm in the opposite direction popping it back in place with yet another sickening pop. The belt fell from her mouth when she fell over and her head hit the floor as she gasped. "I hate being old…" She muttered as she started putting her belt back on.

"If you're old then what does that make us?" Morgan asked.

She grinned, "Geezers, obviously."

"Kaitlin…" Prentiss warned her.

"Tis just jest, my fair maid." Kaitlin told her with a small laugh.

"Hey, Kaitlin." Morgan called her first name, "Don't slip into Shakespearean now, we still need you." They all knew that she slipped into Shakespearean when she was tired. "You said you had an idea, what was it?"

"In my duffle bag is my laptop…If I can figure out how to use the video camera and get it connected to the computers here. I could stream everything that happens here to you guys…if we're lucky I'll have internet connection here. Then maybe that will lead you to wherever I am." She paused, "Garcia…do you still have my BAU account password?"

"If you haven't changed it…then yes." Garcia told her.

"Then you need to grab the bag and set up my laptop. I'll work from here." She slid over to as close to the table as she could get. Then as her eyes followed the chain she noticed that it was thrown over a support beam. "I can do this but…" She looked at feet and saw that her ankles were bound by leather and buckles. She grinned as she leaned over and clumsily started undoing the buckles. The moment she got one of her ankles out she stopped fighting with them figuring it'd be easier to put back on later if she only undid one.

She tried to stand up but her hips gave out on her again. "We don't have time for this!" She snapped at herself then she gripped the chain though the chain slipped from the blood on her hands. Her fingers lodged themselves into the links and she pulled herself up. When she was on both feet she looped the chain around her right hand and she pulled. She pulled with everything she had but still gained no leveraged against whatever it was that kept her chained.

She closed her eyes and focused on the victims, thinking about what an unsub did to victims always made her angry. She saw the first three girls' profile pictures; she thought about how pure and innocent they were before they were murdered. Then the crime scene photos came to her mind and then the girls' purity and innocence was stolen from them before they could truly start living. She felt her body instantly tense with anger and her hands unconsciously pulled. She heard a scraping of some sort in the distance.

That's when she thought about the women who were murdered, the bright smiling pictures of them. She thought of the futures that they were planning to have. Lillian Matthews in the bridesmaid gown for her sister's wedding where she was supposed to watch her sister walk down the aisle. Kathleen Anders surrounded by children and animals. And Abigail Winters standing in front of a classroom filled of anxious children. Then she pictured the crime scene photos of them and the thought of their lost futures which turned her anger into fury. She pulled harder and she heard some more scraping.

Then finally she thought about Mikey. His bright smile. His knowing eyes so blue that they were like the ocean and if she wasn't careful she'd drown in them. The warmth of him waiting for her when she got home. The soft caresses from his hands, the way their breath intermingled while they kissed then his kind determination while he concentrated on something he just couldn't get. Then finally she thought about the last time she saw him, his blue waiting, pleading, for her to say yes, and the way they sparkled when she had kissed him. Then just as she began to see the future they were supposed to have it shattered and all she was left with were the photos of his dissected body. Then her fury turned into rage, white hot rage.

She pulled the chain with enough force for her to land onto the floor. She took a gasping breath while trying to ease the rage inside her. 'There will be time for that later…but right now you have a job to do.' She thought then quickly spoke, "You ready Garcia?"

"I'm setting up now. What about you?" She asked.

Kaitlin looked at the equipment and snorted, "Give me fifteen…no…ten minutes."

She typed as fast as she could once she realized that everything was hooked up and she had turned on the camera. "That bastard was planning to record everything in the first place." She muttered absently while she worked. She pressed the send button with a sigh, "There that should doith it. Oh great high priestess of technology the rest doth be up to you." Her legs gave out and she leaned against the desk then she lazily closed the window where the video streaming was happening. "Is it still working?" She asked.

"Yes, don't worry I'll find out where you are. After all I am the High Priestess of all that is technical." Kaitlin could nearly see Garcia's grin.

"Good…" Kaitlin closed her eyes.

"Hey, Kaitlin. You're not allowed to give up right now." Garcia told her.

"I can't do it…I have no strength left." That's when she heard the sound of a door opening. She jolted up and moved towards the spot she woke up in. As soon as she got close enough to think she could fool whoever was coming she quickly did up the buckle around her free ankle then she snapped the lid of the communicator shut.

"Oh you're awake." A bored voice told her from behind her.

"Where are my dogs?" She asked curtly.

The owner of the voice walked then knelt in front of her. She froze when she noticed the black on black ensemble, now that he was up close and the room was more brightly lit then the kitchen in the safe house had been she knew why she wasn't able to see his face before. His hat covered his eyes and he had a surgical mask covering everything from his nose down. He flicked the communicator that currently sat on the strap of her shirt. "How'd you find this?" He asked.

"The alarm was going off and it wouldn't stop." The beeping and flashing started up again. Garcia was calling her back probably on Hotch's order. "See? It won't stop." She opened it and pressed a button then shut the lid again disconnecting the call again. "It woke me up…so I let the flashing lead me to where it was located."

"That doesn't explain why my computers are all awake." He told her.

"I wasn't finished, so when I was trying to grab it I lunged too early and I hit my head on the table. See…my forehead's bleeding." She moved her hands up to point it out to him.

"I see."

The beeping started up again, "See it just won't stop!" She opened it again then pressed two buttons this time, one to answer the call and the other to mute the speaker so that everyone with Garcia couldn't be heard but they could hear her. "There that should do it." She looked at him again. "Now tell me, where are my dogs? More importantly are they still alive?"

"You'll see them soon enough."

"When is 'soon enough'? I want to see them now!"

He laughed, "All in due time…but right now it seems like you need to rest." She cringed when he touched her face but then slumped over as he injected the contents of a syringe into her neck.

* * *

><p>"What do we know?" Hotch asked at the round table where everyone had gathered.<p>

"Well he's been committed to following Melrose for almost twenty years." Morgan spoke.

"He waited until you, Morgan and Rossi were gone to make his move. Suggesting alpha males make him nervous." Reid told them.

"He's strong enough to carry over a hundred and thirty pounds of dead weight." Prentiss told them.

"He's confident enough to talk to her, but not show his face." JJ spoke. "Meaning he doesn't have confidence in his looks."

"He dropped everything to follow her to Maryland and then once again to Fredericksburg. So he's either unemployed or has had enough money to support himself for the past fifteen years." Hotch spoke.

"She knows him…but had no idea he followed her to Maryland." Rossi told them.

"How do you know that?" Reid asked.

Rossi placed down two photos one was a twelve to thirteen year girl with blond hair waving to the camera and the other was another blond looking away from the camera who was about sixteen or seventeen. "She's obviously aware in the first picture of someone pointing a camera at her, but in the second one she doesn't even seem to notice it."

"Then we should go talk to her family. Prentiss and I will go. Morgan and Rossi go to her condo she might have kept something from before she moved. Reid and JJ meet back up with Garcia and see if she has a name for who rented that apartment yet." Hotch told them.

* * *

><p><em>She was crying, she didn<em>_'__t know why but she was crying. Her eyes were sore and her body ached as she withheld the sobs from her parents' view. She knew that this was the least painful way for him to go. Go? Where was he going? Who was he exactly? Why couldn__'__t she remember?_

_ She stumbled past her father__'__s caring arms and down the hallway. She opened the door where she knew they had brought him. She looked in and saw him laying there, it was like he was sleeping of course that__'__s what they had called it, putting him to sleep. She walked in and went to him, his soft fur was cooling. He was dead. Max was dead. Her Max, her St. Bernard of eight years was dead. _

_ She cried as the realization hit her and she clenched her hands into his fur to keep herself from sobbing the painful sobs that she wanted to. She didn__'__t need her parents worrying about her not like that when they already had one baby to worry about. She__'__d be able to mourn his death properly in her room later tonight. _

_ She looked up when she heard a click and saw a flash behind her lids then when she turned she saw a boy there. He was probably her age. He held a camera in one hand and a brilliant red rose in the other. __"__I__'__m sorry; it__'__s just that you looked so pretty there. I__'__ve seen you at school I__'__m-.__"_

* * *

><p>Kaitlin woke up the moment she felt something wet be splashed on her. Her body didn't feel stiff anymore, which probably meant that whatever he stuck in her neck wasn't mixed in with a muscle paralyzer as she thought it probably would have been. She looked up when she heard a voice. "It's about time you woke up."<p>

"Oh it's you again…great. Are you going to tell me where my dogs are yet?" She watched as he paced.

He laughed, "You still have a one track mind as usual."

She smirked, "You should see me on a good day though knowing stalkers like you; you probably already have."

"Oh believe me, I have." The smugness in his voice made her desperately want to hit him.

"Ugh fine. Since you won't show me my dogs, can you at least show me your face?" She asked. "So I can learn who my perspective suitor is."

"So you don't remember the sound of my voice?" He seemed disappointed by that.

"Well it's been a long time since I moved to Maryland. Almost fifteen years since then." She seemed whimsical thinking about it.

"So you're not even willing to admit where you're from?" He leaned close to her ear and whispered, "Are you afraid the infamous Dr. Spencer Reid might realize who you really are?"

"Leave him out of this." She growled. "Now are you going to show me who you really are?" She smirked again, "Or are you scared?"

He leaned back then pulled off his mask and hat. "Do you remember me now?"

She looked at him and her eyes widened in realization, "Leo…"

* * *

><p>Hotch and Prentiss sat on a couch across from where Kaitlin's parents sat. "Mr. and Mrs. Melrose, we understand that you moved here fifteen years ago. Is that correct?"<p>

"From Vegas, yes." Mrs. Melrose told them.

"Can we ask why?" Hotch asked.

Detective Melrose swallowed, "Kaitlin came home with bruises often when she went to school there. She didn't talk to us about it though, because Jake had just turned one at the time."

"So you ignored her?" Prentiss asked.

"Of course not!" Mrs. Melrose snapped, "She just didn't tell us things. She was ten when we had our second child and she understood that babies needed a lot of affection."

"We're not saying that you did." Hotch shot a glance at Prentiss. "We're just trying to find out who took your daughter."

"We know. It's just the reason we came here was because one night Kaitlin came home with week old bruises and a giant smile on her face saying that she wanted to be a cop when she was older. But then two days later she came home with a black eye and fresh bruises all over her body for helping some student who was being picked on by the football team." Detective Melrose told them. "I already had a job waiting for me here and we weren't going to take her out of school until the year was over…but we couldn't wait around anymore. Do you think that could have been the stressor?"

"No, sir. This guy has been following Kaitlin around since she was twelve and we think that she knew him on a personal level. That they were close." Hotch told him as Steph walked into the room with mugs of coffee. She passed them around and Hotch and Prentiss both said their thanks.

"Kaitlin's never been particularly close to anyone." Mrs. Melrose told them. "She never really had any friends and if she did she never brought them home. Or at least she didn't until after we moved here." Both her daughter and husband looked at her.

"You know, mother, there are pills to help with your memory." Steph told her.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

Steph sighed, "The twins, mother. The two who helped Kaitlin baby sit us when you were tired."

"Oh!" Mrs. Melrose stood and rushed off.

"What did she mean about Kaitlin has never been particularly close to anyone?" Prentiss asked.

Detective Melrose looked down at his hands, "That's probably my fault. I was a police officer and she was my daughter. The other children thought she was stuck up and if they did anything wrong she'd tell me. But she seemed happy while we had Max."

"Max?" Hotch asked.

"Our…Well Kaitlin's St. Bernard. But we had to get him put down when Kaitlin was twelve…Oh God! She met one of the twins that day!"

Mrs. Melrose walked into the room with a picture in between her fingers. "It's the only picture we have of them." She placed it on the table.

"Detective can you point out which twin she met that day?" Hotch turned the photo to face the detective.

"I can't I'm sorry."

Steph's finger pointed to the one of the right, "It's Casey you're looking for."

"Are you sure?" Prentiss looked at the young woman who should have been too young to remember something that far back.

"Casey was obsessed with taking pictures of Kaitlin and once told me he'd kill for her." She looked at them, "Yeah I'm sure."

"Where did they meet?" Hotch asked.

"At their family veterinary clinic." Detective Melrose told them. "Their last name was Ridenger."

"Thank you very much for your time." Prentiss told them as they began to stand up.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin shook her head, "No wait you're not Leo. You're Casey. It makes sense now." She grinned, "Does Leo know what you're doing? Killing innocent girls and kidnapping me?"<p>

Casey's hands slammed down on either side of her, "He's dead! Just like our parents!"

"What happened? You cut them open? Were they your first?" She snapped.

"What do you know? You left us!"

"Not by choice! I would have put with the beatings every freaking day if I could have kept you, and Leo safe!"

Then he was kissing her. His lips were forceful and chapped. That made her think about Mikey's demanding but kind kisses then the kisses she shared with Reid which were soft and gentle. And those two thoughts made her think that this was wrong. Then instinctively her knees went up and pushed him away. She then kicked him in the face with the full strength of her body put into it. Then she quickly went back into her original sitting position and started laughing harshly, "Don't mistake me for those women, you won't get me unless you break my spirit and killing Mikey just wasn't enough to do that."

"Then your choice is to fight?" He asked.

She glared at him, "I won't ever stop fighting you, not even for a second!"

"Then, I have no choice. You can take your chances with the dogs." As he said it the area behind them lit up and the snarling of dogs could be heard. "But I won't leave you defenseless completely. It'd be a shame to lose you now." He placed her gun in front of her and watched as she lunged for it but he kicked it away. "I'd recommend grabbing that and finding some high ground in the next thirty seconds, or else you'll end up just like Jezebel did." He walked away as she began fighting with the buckles on her ankles.


	8. Chapter 8

(A/N: The plot thickens! The clock continues tick as Kaitlin is left alone with the Surgeon who seems determined to make sure she doesn't make it out alive.)

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds belongs to it's legal owners

Chapter Eight:

"Garcia, I need you to look up the name Casey Ridenger." Hotch spoke into his phone as they walked towards the SUV.

"That's what I was just about to call you for, sir. Kaitlin was woken up and she got the person to take off his mask and she called him Leo. So I looked up any connections she might have had with anyone of the name Leo. It seems she knew a Leo Ridenger throughout most of her adolescent life, but it seems he passed away fifteen years ago in a car crash. So then I looked up the last name Ridenger in the Vegas database and it turns out that his parents owned veterinary clinics all over the country and they were seriously loaded. So here's where we get to your Casey Ridenger. He volunteered at his parent's clinics, had a serious interest in photography and he had some serious talent for photographing Kaitlin. After she moved it seems that he had to go therapy sessions everyday due to severe anger issues and threatening a kid at his school." She told him.

"I'm sensing a 'but' in there." Prentiss spoke.

"But after a therapy session when his parents came to get him, with Leo, there was a car accident and he was the only survivor. After that, he completely fell off the grid. Well he would have if he wasn't using his brother's name as an alias. The person that registered for that flat across the street from Kaitlin's parent's house was Leo Ridenger…or I guess Casey Ridenger."

"You said that the Ridenger's owned clinics all around the country are there any in the area?" Hotch asked.

"There are…wow…twenty in Virginia and Maryland, ten from Fredericksburg to Sliver Springs."

"Check for ones that have closed down." He told her.

"Five."

There was a pause and then JJ's voice was heard over the speaker, "Oh God!"

* * *

><p>Kaitlin undid the buckles on her ankles and then quickly ran towards the gun that had been kicked to the side. She looked at the dogs whose cage was being lifted up then she quickly looked around for anything she could climb but saw nothing. She holstered her gun and looked at the shackles that bound her hands then the chain that was attached to them. She wrapped one of her hands around the chain and started climbing.<p>

The cold metal bit into her thighs as she wrapped her legs around the chain to aid in the climbing. She pulled herself up, lifting the remains of the chain behind her which created a small swing. As she climbed she glanced at the cage that held the dogs back, which was almost completely removed. That's when the string of profanities, insults and death threats started slipping past her lips. Most of which would probably shock her coworkers and some of which even shocked her.

Soon she heard the snarls of the dogs coming towards her and she looked down then decided that there wasn't enough distance between her and them. She climbed faster and higher then she thought possible. But then her grip loosened for just a second and with a squeal she managed to grip it before completely falling. "That's it. If I manage to get out of this fucking mess I'm going to murder him." She muttered and returned to climbing.

She hefted herself onto the support beam and turned the mute button off. "Garcia?"

"I'm here." Her voice was quivering.

"I need your eyes…how many dogs are there?" Kaitlin asked.

"Nine." She whispered.

Kaitlin pulled the clip out of her gun, "Damn…only nine rounds."

"Can you deal with all of them with only nine rounds?" Garcia asked.

"Now that I have some more light I can do it with eight…" She bit her lip.

"Eight? What do you mean eight? You're about to do something dangerous aren't you?"

"Dangerous and stupid are my middle names, remember?" Kaitlin laughed hollowly as she began lining up her shots. "But don't worry it won't kill me…probably."

"Kaitlin…" Reid's voice came through the communicator.

"Yeah?"

"Don't miss."

She laughed and a smile formed on her face, "Reid, hon, I never miss." She took the first shot and the first dog went down, "Eight." Her second shot connected with another dog, "Seven." Then her third shot took another out, "Six." The fourth, fifth and sixth shots also connected, "Five, four, three." She shifted positions so she could get to her belt then took her seventh shot, "Two." With a twist of her hand her belt buckle came undone and she pulled the belt out of its loops again. She looked down again and took her eighth shot, "one." Then turned the safety on and stuck the gun in the small of her back.

Her hands moved like lightning as she looped the belt strap into the buckle but kept it pretty loose. She then grabbed the chain and created the swing like loop again. She slipped her feet inside of the loop and then gripped the top of the chain tightly as she began to lower herself down.

She got halfway down then she removed her holster and noticed that there was a dark liquid substance on it but decided it would be better if she didn't analyze it too much because whatever it was probably covered her as well. She looked at the holster and thought a silent goodbye to it then she lightly tossed it away from her. It hit the floor with a loud clutter and the remaining dog ran to it. As the dog began to chew on the holster she lowered herself to the ground then noiselessly dropped herself to the ground and just as silently approached the dog.

Her foot grazed something that clinked together like a set of glasses and she cringed. The dog looked up turned to face her and snarled. "Time's up!" She bit her lip and lifted the belt then started spinning it around like a lasso. The dog lunged at her and she sidestepped as she let the belt slip around the dog's neck. She snapped the belt and the buckle tightened the loop then a sickening crack was heard. The dog stopped struggling and its tongue lolled out of its mouth. "Zero." She whispered as she let go of the belt.

"Is it over?" Garcia asked.

"It's over; they can rest in peace now." She looked at the nine dogs sadly.

"And you're…?"

"I'm unscathed don't worry…" She looked down at her wrists, "Or at least I wasn't wounded from this anyways." She heard a latch come undone and had her gun out in a second. She watched as a pair of two white paws followed by white legs, close to the ground, slowly approached the area followed by a black nose and white mussel then finally a pair of ice blue eyes looking up at her. "Raph!"

She stuck the gun back into the small of her back again and she knelt down, "Come here, boy." Raph stood then walked closer to her until she could all of his tricolored coat and his furiously waging tail. She clapped her hands together, "Come on, Raph." He galloped towards her and tackled her to the ground, licking her face happily.

When he was finished he nudged her forehead and whimpered. She patted his side, "Don't worry, it's nothing." He got off of her and she began looking him over to see if he was injured in anyway then when she was finished she began to thoroughly petting him wherever her bound hands could reach.

When she finished he sat up again, "Alright Raph, where is Amarelle?" He stood and howled then there was a barking coming from somewhere that wasn't bathed in light. "Take me to her." She got up and they began walking into the darkness.

"Kaitlin, where are you going?" JJ asked.

"To find my dog." Her voice became cold as she thought about what she was going to do to Casey if she ever found out he hurt Amarelle.

As they walked throughout the darkness the slightest noise made her jump so she did the only thing she could think of to block out eerie silence, "Okay so I have one bullet left, so what am I supposed to do if a horde of zombies comes out of nowhere? Or worse zombie dogs!"

"What are you talking about? Zombies don't exist." Reid told her.

She let out a hissed breath, "Easy for you to say, you're all nice and warm in a BAU technical analyst's office while I am here walking in a large dark place that smells like death with who knows what around every corner."

"Death doesn't have a smell." Reid spoke again. "What you're most likely smelling is the decaying of bodies."

"One: that's not helping. Two: death smells like a St. Louis crime scene that still has all the bodies during the midsummer. And three: Ooh a light!" She paused for a moment, "Though ideas on how to fight a zombie horde with only one bullet would still be appreciated."

"First you need to wait until something really big comes, then pray that your bullet does enough damage to kill it. Second since you have a chain you might as well use it, I hear they're very useful for decapitating zombies. Finally, when facing off with any kind of zombie hoard, pray that you don't die." Garcia told her.

"Okay good advice." Kaitlin nodded as she picked up her pace and she began running towards the light. As she started to get closer she noticed that there was a cage with an open door around the light. Then when she was close enough to see inside the cage she smiled, there was her German shepherd nursing six newly born puppies. "Six…"

"What?" JJ asked.

"Amarelle is now the mother of six." She tried to get closer but the chain stopped her from going any further. So she simply sighed and sat down, there was no point in fighting it anymore, instead she simply watched as Raph sat down beside her as his head rested on her lap.

She lost track of how much time had passed, she responded when Garcia, Reid or JJ spoke but other than that she was silent. Until her stomach growled which caused her to groan, "Ugh…need to refuel…need granola bars…" Raph got up and she fell onto her side. She heard Amarelle bark an invitation to her. "I can't I'm too big for that…besides puppy breast milk probably isn't healthy for humans."

"You're talking to your dog again aren't you?" Garcia asked.

"Being held captive is a lonely business." Kaitlin watched as Amarelle barked again and nudged her food bowl. She looked at the dry kibble pieces and decided it was better than nothing so she tried to get to it but was unable to. "Raph, fetch the food bowl." She told him as she lay on her side again.

Raph went and took the food bowl then brought it to her. She took a piece and stuck it into her mouth. Her eyes widened, 'This taste!' She spat it out and then sat up, "Garcia, how many locations do you guys have the search narrowed down to?"

"Five, why?" She asked.

"Because what he's feeding Amarelle is a very rare type of food that they give to nursing mothers, to help the nutrients in their breast milk." Kaitlin grinned.

"So couldn't he just buy it at any veterinary clinic?" JJ asked.

"No, see for this particular type you need a prescription. And at the time of the dognapping we didn't even have a prescription in our house anywhere." She paused as she tried to remember the name then quickly spat it out when she remembered it.

"So they'd have to had it in storage somewhere. Okay I'm checking shipping right now." There was a pause then Garcia spoke again, "There are three, one for DC, one for Silver Springs and one for Fredericksburg…but only one of them still have power running!"

"Woot! I'mma be rescued soon!" Her stomach growled again and she spoke, "Please hurry…"

"That won't be necessary." She turned around with wide eyes and saw Casey standing there.

A growl emanated from Raph's throat and Kaitlin petted him, "Down boy." She then glared at Casey, "Don't you dare touch them, Casey or I swear to God I will murder you where you stand."

He knelt down in front of her, "Now why would I do that? After all I'm not interested in them." He tore her communicator off of her camisole strap and waved it in front of her face, "This, however, I am very interested in." He examined it closely, "It's no doubt the by-product of the brilliant minds of Dr. Spencer Reid and Penelope Garcia. I knew they were working on something, but a communicator? Who would have thought?" He dropped it and went to step on it but her hands covered it up just as his foot landed.

"Don't!" She cried. "Don't destroy it!"

His foot came down onto her hands again and she bit back a cry, "Why not? It's just a toy!"

"It's important!"

"WHY? WHAT'S SO IMPORTANT ABOUT IT?" He demanded as his foot came back down again.

"The fact that it was given to me by my friends! They worked hard on it! They worked so hard on something so incredible. It's my treasure so don't destroy it, please!" She pleaded.

He backed off, "Is that so?"

She grabbed the communicator and held it to her chest. Her hands throbbed and she knew that they were bleeding. Somehow, probably when he dropped it, the communicator lid was snapped shut. "Casey…stop this okay? No one else needs to get hurt. I'll go with you…I'll do whatever you want, so stop this please."

Suddenly he was in front of her and his hand was pulling her hair back so that her head was tilted towards him. "Do you think any of that matters to me anymore?" He snapped. "You're fifteen years too late for that now, Kaitlin!"

"It's never too late! We could leave right now and I know ways so that they'll never find us, just stop all this."

He smiled fully flashing teeth, which sent chills up her spine. "Do you really think you can stall me? I know all of your tricks. If you really want to stall I've got a better idea." His fingers knotted themselves into her hair and he began walking towards where the laptops were, dragging her by her hair.

When he turned to start dragging her she noticed a small silver key resting in his back pocket but her attention was brought back to Raph who was about to lunge at Casey. "Stay!" She told him. "Stay there boy, it's safer there." Raph sat back down and let out a low whine.

That's when Casey tugged on her hair harder, "Be quiet!"

Her hands went up to try to smack away his, "Be gentle, you ass, a woman's hair is her life!" Her right hand continued to smack his hand as her left slipped the key out of his back pocket without him noticing just as she had with Reid's wallet earlier.

When she got it out she looked to see if there were any telltale signs running through his body but she saw none. She smiled but quickly winced when the grip on her hair tightened again and she let her hands drop as she hid the key from view.

When they arrived in front of the cameras again he threw her to the side and she let out a hiss. "This is assaulting a federal agent just so you know add that to the seven murder charges. That's at least three life sentences…which you'll never live to see the end of." She laughed as she sat up. "I win, Casey."

He pulled out Reid's gun and the next thing she knew she was staring down the barrel of the revolver. "If you win then why am I the one holding the gun?"

"Touché, however, if you kill me my team will find you." She grinned.

"Not if I make it look like you came with me willingly." He took the communicator again and looked at her, "What number is Garcia's?"

"Don't call her name so familiarly!" She snapped.

He hit her with the revolver, "Her number!"

She laughed, "Lucky number seven but before you call her, tell me why first."

"Because you cried."

He pressed the number and there was a hesitant Garcia on the other line, "Kaitlin?"

"Sorry, she's a little busy, but you could do her a favor by connecting the rest of your team to this call, she has something to say." Casey told her.

"Do it, Garcia. I'll be fine just do what he says." Kaitlin told her.

"Of course." They waited for the others to pick up their phones.

The first was Hotch, "Hotchner."

"Hi Hotch, you've got me and Garcia, the others will be on the line shortly. Who's with you?" Kaitlin asked.

"Hey, Kaitlin…" Prentiss spoke.

"Hey back Emily." Kaitlin smiled.

The second was Morgan, "You've got me and Rossi, Garcia."

"You've got everyone but Reid and JJ here." Kaitlin told him.

"Ridenger! You let her go! Do you understand me?" Morgan nearly yelled.

"Derek, please." She pleaded.

Then finally JJ and Reid answered, "Reid here, you're on speaker Garcia."

"Reid…is JJ with you?" Garcia asked.

JJ spoke, "I'm here. What's wrong?"

Kaitlin laughed quietly, "It seems like I finally ran out of luck. So I have some things to say." She swallowed, "First off…let me just say that I love you all, you know that right?" She waited for them all to respond before speaking again as she started to try to use the key to unlock her shackles.

"Hotch, you taught me how to be brave and strong. So let me say thank you for that. Emily, you taught me that being fashionable and brave is possible, thank you. Derek, thank you for every good morning that made me smile when I was having a bad morning. Rossi, we haven't known each other for long, but thanks for always having a waiting ear to help out during a crisis." She felt the tears that had unconsciously built up in her eyes start to falling. "Penelope, thank you for teaching me how to properly troll the internet and for forcing me to go out sometimes." A hiccup escaped her mouth as she continued, "JJ, you put up with so much while you were pregnant but you still taught me how to hold a baby properly so thank you. And Spen-Reid, I don't even know where to start, thank you for teaching me how to play chess seems like a good start and for just being you. Thank you for everything."

She fought the sobs that threatened to escape her trembling body, "I need to ask something…can you make sure that my family knows that I love them?" She asked.

"We will." Hotch told her as Casey closed the lid on the communicator.

She looked at Casey again with as much hate as she could manage, "What now?" She made sure he was looking at her eyes and not her hands which were still struggling with the lock on the shackles.

"What do you think?" He asked as he clicked down the hammer. His index finger began to press down on the trigger when she heard the satisfying sound of the lock unlocking on her shackles. The shackles came off and she rolled out of the way just before the shot happened. She had her gun out, the safety off and pointed at him before he even realized what was happening.

"Don't move." She warned him. "You know I don't miss, after all you watched what I did to your dogs from the support beam. At this range there is no chance of me missing." She watched him look down at the shackles then over to her. "Now you're going to listen to me very carefully. You're going to put Reid's gun down on the ground then you're going to get on your knees and wait for my team to get here."

He began moving slowly but then suddenly he was facing her with his gun pointed towards her, "If I die I'm taking you with me." He told her.

"Strange I had the same idea, only I'm more likely to live from this." She smiled, "Now what?"

There was a long silent pause between the two and she swore she could hear his heart pounding from the adrenaline. She heard the approach of sirens but kept her eyes on the man in front of her. "Casey, I don't want to kill you so put the gun down." She pleaded, "If my team finds you like this they won't hesitate to kill you."

He smirked as he heard the doors being slammed open and yells of 'FBI'. "Looks like it's show time. How do you think they'd feel if they found you DOA when they were in the building?"

He pressed down on the trigger but she was faster then suddenly there was a bullet hole in his head and his body was falling backwards. "I'm sorry." She whispered as she got up and kicked the revolver away from Casey's corpse. She heard the sounds of boots hitting the cement of the floor coming closer and she called out, "Federal Agent! Don't shoot."


	9. Chapter 9

(A/N: OMG CHAPTER NINE! This is finally the last chapter of the 'crime' genre! Woo! Yay! =D)

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds belongs to it's legal owners

Chapter Nine:

"Kaitlin?" Prentiss asked as she stepped into the lit area and she canvassed the scene, "Is he…?"

"Dead? Yes." Kaitlin looked at the corpse again, then back at Prentiss. "I just wish it had ended differently. Eight people…dead because of this." Her eyes got a distant look them but it disappeared when Hotch walked into their line of sight.

"Melrose, there's a medic waiting for you outside." He told her as he surveyed the area. He opened his mouth to speak again but was cut off by a loud howl and sharp barking which caused her to take off running.

There was a mass of SWAT members surrounding the cage where Raph and Amarelle were. She knew their guns were pointed at the husky before she got anywhere near them. "Stand down!" She told them as she pushed through the heavily armored agents.

"Agent Melrose step away from that dog he's mad!" One of them told her.

"I said stand down." She told them with a voice that was ice cold. "He's just protecting his family, there doesn't need to anymore blood shed here."

"Even if you say that!" Another agent spoke.

"Stand down and I'll deal with him alright? Guns make him nervous." She waited until the SWAT team pointed their guns at ground then turned her back to them. She knelt down in front of the still growling Raph, "Shush, boy, shush. It's alright. I'm alright, we're alright." Her voice was calm and gentle. Slowly Raph looked around then decided it was okay to sit down and relax for a moment. She offered him a hand and he nudged it affectionately. She went to him and wrapped her arms around him as her fingers laced their way into his fur, "Don't worry everything's going to be alright." This time she knew she was trying to convince herself more than her dog. She felt another nose bump her arm and she turned to see Amarelle sitting next to them then she wrapped her right arm around the German shepherd's body. "Yeah we're going to be alright."

Their brief moment of solace was shattered when Amarelle started snarling and lunged at one of the SWAT members who had his gun pointed directly at them. The gun went flying as Amarelle's lunge hit him in the chest and pinned him to the ground. She snapped at him, making sure that he didn't move until Hotch came over and pulled out his hand cuffs. Amarelle stepped off of him and Hotch flipped him over then handcuffed him. Hotch got him to stand up and one of the SWAT members searched him and stripped him of his weapons. "You're under arrest for the attempted murder of Kaitlin Melrose."

Kaitlin walked over and looked at Hotch, "I want to see his face, is that okay?" Hotch nodded and she pulled off the helmet then proceeded to drop it when she saw his face. "Leo? But…you're…"

"Supposed to be dead? Yeah, I know. There's even a death certificate and a grave back home." He looked at her, "You look like hell."

"Gee, I wonder why." She crossed her arms, "Your brother kidnapped me and tried to kill me then you come along and try to finish me off?" She stood on her tiptoes and only left a millimeter between them, "Why do it, Leo? Why?"

"Because you killed him!" He snapped.

She sank back down onto her heels, "Because he was about to pull the trigger. I would have died and he would have gone free, would you have preferred that? Letting a serial killer go free while a fellow FBI agent was dead is that what you wanted?"

"Of course it isn't but that was my brother!" He told her, but she turned around.

She looked at the other SWAT members and smiled, "I'm going to need a box big enough to fit six puppies, a couple of blankets to line it with and some sanitary wipes. Please and thank you."

Hotch raised an eyebrow as they complied, "That's impressive." He admitted.

"They know what I'm capable of." She shrugged and turned back to Leo, "What happened, Leo? Start from the car crash." She sat down and he did the same.

"Well we were on our way back from picking up Casey from therapy, after you left things went downhill, he beat up the Captain of the Football team for beating you up for the second time that month."

"Okay that beating was justified because I gave Alexia a black eye…" She could feel Hotch staring down at her with a raised eyebrow, "I regret nothing she deserved it." She looked back at Leo, "Then what happened?"

"We were hit by a truck that ran a red light; Casey was the only one who wasn't seriously injured. He got out of the hospital a day later but I was in a coma for a month, and our parents were DOA. After I woke up, I found out that Casey was already gone…I wanted to go after him but I could barely move. It took an entire year of physical therapy to be able to move freely again."

"And by that time Casey had already fallen off the grid, right?" She asked and he nodded.

"So I did something that I probably shouldn't have but at the time it seemed like the best choice. I faked my own death; I even paid for a tombstone to be put next to my parents'. I went to this guy I'd heard of and got him to forge a death certificate for me then I started chasing the only lead I had."

She swallowed, "Which was?"

"The only other thing that he knew other than our family. You." He paused, "I had no idea where you went. So, since I was 'dead' I couldn't find you myself but a select few people I trusted enough to do some research for me. When I found out that you moved to Silver Springs I headed there immediately but when I found you, I saw Casey right away and he looked happy. So I thought maybe since he's doing so well…"

"You'd leave him to me? Didn't you ever find it strange that he never came up to me?" She asked.

"Well he did like his candid shots."

She paused then looked down at her hands then back to his face, "Did you know?"

"Know what?"

"What he did to those girls, to those women. Did you know?"

"No! What did he do?" The concern and worry on his face made her sigh.

She smiled as a couple of the SWAT members came back with a box and blankets, "I think we're done here." Leo got lifted off his feet by the one with the blankets after he put them into the box. She stood and took the box from the other SWAT member; the box had the sanitary wipes inside of it, "Thank you." She smiled brightly as she put the box down near the cage then pulled out a sanitary wipe and began wiping the blood off of her hands and wrists.

"Kaitlin what are you doing?" Prentiss asked.

"I need to get the puppies and dogs to a vet." She patted down where her pockets usually were. "Of course I'm wearing a skirt when I need my cell phone. Did anyone bring it with them?"

"I've got it." JJ said as she and Reid walked up. "So there's a medic waiting outside…and from the look of you, I'd say you could use it." She looked Kaitlin over once. "Okay, you did not have that," She used her own cheek to point where the injury was located, "when we last spoke."

Kaitlin touched her cheek and cringed away from her hand that was now slick with blood again, "Oh yeah, I was pistol…well revolver whipped." She wiped the blood off of her hand again then took her phone from JJ. She dialed a number then began to walk away from the group.

"Is she going to be alright?" Reid asked.

Prentiss looked at him, "Would you?"

"I wouldn't. Losing your fiancé then finding out it was your childhood friend who killed him, then having to kill that same friend." JJ looked over at the vague shadow of Kaitlin.

"And then having the brother of that friend try to kill you, I can only imagine what she's thinking right now." Prentiss sighed.

"Wait, brother? I thought he was dead." Reid looked back and forth between Hotch and Prentiss.

"It's a long story." Hotch told him as Kaitlin came back.

"Detective Melrose is on his way, he'll take the puppies to the vet's while I get looked at by the medic." She sat down in front of the cage then looked at Reid, "Reid, hon, please step back a bit I don't want the 'Reid Effect' worrying Amarelle and Raph, okay?"

He pursed his lips together, "Right…" He backed up until she gave him a thumbs up."

"Okay let's do this." She crawled into the cage and dragged the box behind her. She pulled out the box of sanitary wipes then lined the box with the blankets. She picked up the first puppy in both of her hands then gently laid it in the box but kept a hand in the box, constantly touching the pup while she picked up the second one in one hand then laid it beside the first and she watched as they cuddled together. "Okay good. Now onto the other four, okay Katie you can do this." She whispered to herself.

She moved quickly when she got use of both hands again and as soon as she got the final puppy into the box she stood in a crouched position then she reached out for a hand which Prentiss took. She used her free hand to grip the cage as she slipped a leg outside the cage and over the box. She moved her upper body out of the cage then leaned heavily on her free leg as she let go of it. She lifted her back leg up and for the briefest of moments she looked graceful but that graceful appearance shattered when she wobbled then began falling forward.

Only Prentiss' hand on hers kept her from completely falling, "Don't worry I've got you."

"Thanks." Kaitlin pulled her leg towards her and finally got both feet on the ground. She went to the box, "Okay good they're perfectly fine."

"We ready?" JJ asked, "Morgan's outside and he says that the medic's getting anxious and that CSI want to process the scene."

They all looked at Kaitlin who was picking up the box; she looked at them then smiled. "Let's go. Wait…wait! Can we do an epic stride out of here with all of our feet in sync with one another's?" The look that they gave her clearly stated 'No'! She pouted, "It was just a suggestion. Lead the way fearless leader."

They walked towards the entrance of the building; Hotch and Reid were in the front while JJ and Prentiss were following behind with Kaitlin and the dogs behind them. Prentiss turned to look back at her, "Are you alright?"

"I'm just a little dizzy that all." Kaitlin tried her best to smile but they could tell it was forced.

"The adrenaline's starting to wear off." JJ looked at her then slowed her pace so that she was in between her and Raph, who took the hint and went up to walk beside Hotch. JJ then placed a hand on Kaitlin's back and Prentiss walked behind her just in case.

"I'm alright, really. Please stop fussing over me." Kaitlin pleaded though she stumbled as she said it. JJ's free hand went under the box and Prentiss grabbed Kaitlin's waist to keep her from falling. "Thanks."

"Do you want me to carry them?" JJ asked.

"I can do it." She forced herself to pick up her feet for the next couple of steps. "If I can't do this, then I have no right to help raise these puppies." When she looked up there was a renewed look of determination in her eyes.

"Then we'll do it together, starting with the left foot." Prentiss told her as she took a step with her own left foot and JJ did the same which caused Kaitlin to mimic the action. "Now the right." Prentiss and JJ both moved their right foot and Kaitlin once again mimicked the action. "Let's just take this one step at a time."

"One step at a time." Kaitlin repeated as she put her left foot in front of the other but it felt like moving lead. She looked ahead to where Hotch, Reid and Raph were waiting for them then she decided that reaching them was her goal, though she knew that once they got close enough they would start walking away again and she was right.

The remainder of the walk to the entrance of the building was painfully slow. But when they saw the entrance and the people waiting there for them something pushed them forward with a renewed speed although for Kaitlin that was walk with a slightly longer stride then before. When she walked outside she took a deep breath of fresh evening air that chilled her to her core but she smiled as the smell of 'death' faded from her mind.

Morgan walked up but was quickly dodged when Kaitlin saw her father. She let out a whistle which brought Raph and Amarelle to her side and she walked up to where he stood by his car. "Detective."

"Agent." He smiled at her.

"So I guess I'll leave them to you then." She handed him the box and he stuck it into the backseat where Jake was waiting. "Jake you make sure that nothing happens to them okay?"

"Got it." He waved then clutched onto the box tightly to prove his point.

Kaitlin patted the seat beside Jake, "Come on Raph." The husky jumped up then let out a low whine when he realized that there was a box on Jake's lap. She made sure that his tail was out of the way before closing the door and opening the passenger side front door. She patted the front seat, "Come on girl." Amarelle let out a small whine and Kaitlin looked at her then knelt down. "You need to go with them, okay?" Amarelle let out another whine but got into the car, "I'll see you soon." Kaitlin pet Amarelle's head then made sure that her tail was out of the way and closed the door.

"Don't worry we'll take good care of them." Her father ruffled her hair then went over to the other side of the car, "And Kaitlin-Marie Rosalie Louise Melrose." She cringed at the sound of her entire name being used, "Don't you ever worry us like that again."

"Yes, sir." She stepped away from the car as he got in and waved as he drove away. That's when she noticed what covered her arms though if it hadn't been for the light of the evening sunset she probably wouldn't have noticed that her arms were speckled with blood, that wasn't hers. She looked down at herself for the first time and saw that her entire body was covered with it.

She screamed a blood curdling scream that she didn't even recognize as hers while her legs gave out on her and she started to claw at her own skin while trying to scratch off the blood. It didn't take long for her hands to be locked in a tight grip though it didn't stop her from struggling. "Let me go! I need to get it off! It's everywhere! I need to get it off!"

"Kaitlin!" Morgan's voice reached her ears and it finally registered with her, "That's enough! It's over!"

She looked at him as her vision blurred, "It's over?"

"Yes, it's over everything's going to be alright." He told her as her vision blacked out and the last thing she heard was Morgan shouting, "Medic!"

* * *

><p>Two days passed before Kaitlin woke up and another day passed before JJ let anyone see her. When Kaitlin woke up she saw the purple communicator waiting for her on stand beside her bed with a note attached saying, 'It has been upgraded with a tracker inside of it on Hotch's order. Sorry. - Reid. PS: Garcia says not to leave it behindlose it again.'

And now she sat in her hospital bed and was hunched over the communicator whispering, "Team Red, this is Team Blue confirming that the package is on the way."

"Why are you whispering?" Reid asked.

"JJ's in the bathroom…she might hear." Kaitlin shrugged, "Anyways about the package…"

"Yeah I've got them, just like you asked." He told her.

She grinned, "Okay cool, I'll pay you back." She paused then spoke again, "And what about the back up?"

"They're on their way, though I don't see why you wanted me to call them."

"I really hate being fussed over." There was a knock on the hospital room door which caused Kaitlin to look up and she saw Lucy standing there with an envelope in her hands. "Reid I've got to go, so I'll see you soon okay?"

"See you soon." He told her and she closed the lid on the communicator.

"You busy?" Lucy asked as she walked in.

Kaitlin shook her head, "I thought you'd have gone back home by now."

"I am home, I was born in Silver Springs remember? Besides I need to talk business with you…about Mikey's will." Lucy pulled a chair over to the bed and sat down.

"Is it bad?"

"He left everything to us."

"Us? As in just you and I?" Kaitlin asked and Lucy nodded as she put the envelope on Kaitlin's lap. "This is?"

"Paper work, some things you need to sign and everything mentioned in that envelope is yours. Of course the majority of it all went to you." Lucy told her.

JJ walked out of the bathroom, looked at the hallway and noticed an overly familiar face with a baby stroller with him, "Will?"

"There you are." Will turned the stroller and walked towards the room.

"Will! Henry! Welcome!" Kaitlin called.

JJ looked at where Lucy sat beside the bed and the envelope on Kaitlin's lap then back at Will, "Do you want to go get some coffee while they talk?" She asked. He took in the situation and nodded, "We'll be back in a bit." She told them and Kaitlin nodded.

"Be safe!" Kaitlin said with a wave as JJ and Will walked down the hall. Then she fingered the envelope.

"If you're not going to open it, I will." Lucy told her.

"That is some sort of violation of privacy." She frowned as she opened the envelope then pulled out the papers that filled it. She looked at the first piece of paper and as she realized what it was her eyes widened, "This is…" She trailed off as she looked at Lucy again.

"The deed of a house, that you knew nothing about but now own? Yes."

"What?"

"He was planning to tell you after you came back from Boston…but…" Lucy pulled out a pen and started flipping through pages. "Sign."

* * *

><p>Reid walked up to the hospital room where Kaitlin was currently staying but stopped when he heard voices from inside. "Oh okay what about 'Sexy Back'?" Kaitlin asked. "He loved that song."<p>

"I don't think the rest of the guests would appreciate that as much as you and I would. Besides I doubt pop is suitable music for a funeral." Lucy told her but paused, "Kaitlin…have you cried yet?"

"I cry all the time…" She frowned.

"Not that kind of cry…I mean threatening to tear you apart from the inside out crying." Lucy took one of her bandaged hands in hers gently, "It's okay…to cry I mean. I'm here for you, you know that right?"

"I know." Kaitlin gently squeezed back but looked up at the doorway and finally noticed Reid standing there. "Reid! When did you get here?"

Lucy looked back and forth between them then gave Kaitlin a knowing look which caused her to blush. "We can talk about this later, so remember Saturday." She got up.

"I know, I'll bust myself out of here tomorrow and drive down." They hugged and Lucy walked past Reid with a grin on her face.

Reid walked in, "What's happening on Saturday?"

"Mikey's funeral." Kaitlin looked down at the envelope again.

"So…where's JJ? I thought she was on constant watch duty." He sat down on the edge of the bed and placed a bag on it.

"Will arrived just after Lucy did so they're probably walking around outside by now." She pointed to the bag, "The package?"

"Just like you asked, already frozen and everything." He opened the bag and offered her a Popsicle then grabbed one for himself. "So this is what hospitalization does to you, makes you want to eat popsicles?"

"Yeah I don't get it either but the same thing happened last time I was hospitalized." She admitted as she tore off the wrapping and licked the frozen treat.

"So…um…" Reid's face started to get the first hints of blush, "Judging from that grin on Ms. Langley's face…she knows about what happened…at the safe house."

"Probably…but she'd never admit it." Kaitlin looked away from his face and went on to eat her Popsicle.

There was long pause between them as they finished their frozen snack. She spoke once they both had thrown out their Popsicle sticks, "I can't believe it's actually over." He looked at her but she kept talking, "Eight years and now that it's finally over…it feels like a dream." She paused, "Finding out that Casey killed seven people…and then realizing that I could have been one of them was…terrifying." Instinct took over before he could stop himself, he hugged her. Her arms wrapped around him and clenched onto his shirt, "It was terrifying and it feels like this feeling won't ever go away."

His arms unconsciously tightened around her, "I know." He whispered. "I know."

* * *

><p>Saturday:<p>

Kaitlin stared at the coffin as she walked behind it fingering the leaf of the red rose she held in her hands. She couldn't stop staring at it, like it was mocking her, saying that it was her fault and at some level of self-loathing she agreed with it. She shook her head then decided it would be better to stare somewhere else, so she opted to look at the pallbearers. Two were Mikey and Lucy's older brothers; two were their cousins, their father and Lucy's current boyfriend. Six people in total…six people who had to carry his body to his grave that she nearly dug for him by herself.

A hand briefly touched her shoulder and she looked to see Lucy giving her a sharp stare. 'Stop internalizing.' Lucy mouthed.

'Sorry.' She mouthed back.

They watched as the pallbearers placed the coffin down in front of the grave marker. The funeral attendees surrounded the coffin as the minister stood in front of it. Kaitlin and Lucy stood away from Lucy's parents. Kaitlin looked back when she felt a hand rest on her shoulder and she saw the entire team standing there. She touched Garcia's hand where it rested on her shoulder but brought her attention back to the minister.

As the funeral continued Kaitlin looked out of the corner of her eye to see Lucy crying and she took her hand which earned her a gentle squeeze back. She looked around at the other people and noticed she was probably the only one, besides her team, who wasn't crying. Was this part of being a profiler? Knowing some of the most horrific things hardened ones soul so badly that they wouldn't even cry at their own fiancé's funeral.

The minister finished speaking then Lucy's parents read a eulogy and everyone there began putting their flowers on the coffin. But when the time came for Kaitlin to move she couldn't. She was frozen and she let her hand slip from Lucy's as Lucy brought her flower up to the coffin.

Loretta Langley looked directly at Kaitlin when she read the final part of her eulogy, "No parent should have to bury their child and for that I am sorry for the life that was stolen from you. Rest in peace Michael Alexander Langley." She and her husband put their white roses onto the casket and began walking away.

Prentiss touched Kaitlin's arm, "You ready?"

Kaitlin shook her head, "Can you guys go on ahead? I'll catch up I just want to say goodbye properly."

"Alright." Hotch told her and he touched her shoulder briefly before starting down the path to where they left the SUVs. Rossi touched her shoulder then followed Hotch and Morgan did the same. JJ, Prentiss and Garcia each hugged her then followed Hotch, Rossi and Morgan.

Reid looked at her and she smiled vaguely, "It'll be alright. Go catch up with the others." She told him.

"Alright, but I'm here if you want to talk." Their hands touched for a second then he followed the others.

Kaitlin looked at the coffin then forced herself to walk to it. She placed her red rose on top of the sea of white ones and whispered, "I'm sorry." She felt a drop of water seep through the lace of her glove. She looked up but only saw overcast no rain. She felt water trickle out of her eyes and down into her hair. Her body started trembling as if felt was being torn from the inside out and she unconsciously held her body to keep herself that from happening. She let out a sob as the tears started to pour from her eyes. She looked at the coffin again though it was just blur of wood now, "I'm sorry. Oh Mikey, I'm sorry!" Her legs started to tremble to the point of not being able to hold her up anymore so she fell to the ground. "I'm sorry! So don't take him away from me!" She sobbed. "Don't leave me! Not without saying goodbye!" She hunched over as she tried to hold herself together though the trembling didn't stop.

* * *

><p>Reid looked back and caught a glimpse of Kaitlin on the ground. He turned to go back but Hotch grabbed his arm. "But Hotch!" He exclaimed.<p>

"She did her best by holding on so long, so let's do our best by watching over her." Hotch told him.

"Alright." Reid nodded solemnly.

* * *

><p>Six weeks later (a couple of days before the anthrax attacks):<p>

Morgan spun around in his chair now that he was finished his paperwork. "You know it still impresses me how much work I can get done when Kaitlin isn't around."

"Do you think she'll be coming back after all that happened?" Prentiss asked.

He turned around once more and this time remained facing the kitchen, "Woah, woah. Who is that?" He watched as a woman walked past them and towards Hotch's office. Her brown curls went past her ample bosom and stopped just before her mid back. She had lightly tanned skin and wore a dark purple suit jacket and matching skirt with a white blouse. He watched as Reid walked up to her and started talking to her, "And how come Reid knows her?"

Reid nodded then walked to his desk though he was very aware of Morgan's gaze, "What?" He looked up.

"Who was that?" Morgan asked.

"You mean you don't recognize her?" Reid looked at Prentiss, who was trying not to laugh but Morgan shook his head. "That was Kaitlin."

"That was Kaitlin?" Morgan looked back and forth between Prentiss and Reid. "Seriously?"

"Yeah, she has a tan now but that was definitely her." Prentiss told him and he looked at Hotch's office where she walked into with his jaw dropped.

* * *

><p>Hotch looked up and signaled for Kaitlin to sit down, "I thought you weren't due back to make your decision for another two weeks."<p>

"I ran out of things to do around my parent's house…and we finished with moving the second week in." She looked at him.

"And what did you decide?"

"For now, I want to return to the BAU at least until we catch Foyet."

"Are you sure you can do this job after what happened?"

"I know that you're worried but I'm not Elle and if you're even the slightest bit worried about me panicking, send me for a psych evaluation."

He raised his eyebrow, "You're offering to take an evaluation?"

"You'd be surprised on what six weeks with nothing but pure puppy love will do to a person. It's the best therapy out there."

"Alright. Even if I get the slightest hint of you starting to panic or you can't do this job, then I'm sending you for one." He placed her credentials and gun in front of her.

She picked them up and smiled, "Of course, sir, and thank you." She stood and headed for the door.

"And Kaitlin…" He looked up.

"Yes sir?" She turned slightly.

"We're glad to have you back." He went back to looking down at the folder on his desk.

She smiled, "I'm glad to be back." She walked out of the office and closed the door behind her. She walked to the stairs and looked at the office then before she realized what she was doing she shouted, "I'M BACK BABY!"

The other agents looked up then the shouting and cheers started. Hotch looked up from his desk. "There goes our peace and quiet." Though when he said it he was smiling slightly.


	10. Chapter 10

(A/N: Well we've finally hit 'romance' genre, it's taken ten chapters but we've finally done it! So we have officially hit season five territory and I may have altered the time line a little mostly to keep Reid's longer hair because it's pretty. So enjoy!)

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds and all lyrics belong to their legal owners

Chapter Ten:

A year had passed and Foyet was dead but so was Haley. Several months had passed since their death, and now it was late June. It was an unnaturally quiet day in the BAU bullpen while they all worked on their paperwork so when Kaitlin placed the final folder on her desk into her 'out' bin she stood up and pulled her go bag out then when she placed it on her desk, Prentiss and Reid both jumped.

Prentiss looked over at her, "What you're done already?"

"Of course I am." She grinned. "And I packed last night so I'm already to go."

"Go? Where are you going?" Reid asked.

Morgan's arms wrapped around her shoulders and his chin rested on his arm next to her ear, "I'm jealous. You get to go on vacation while the rest of us work our butts off here in an overheated office."

"You still haven't gotten around to talking to the custodial staff about that? Sheesh!" She patted his arm, "You could use my desk while I'm gone it's not as warm here as it is in your office."

"Why so I can deal with your super clutter?" He asked.

She looked down slightly at her desk, "It's not as bad as it was before."

"So where are you going?" Reid asked.

"Myrtle Beach, I'll be back in six days. I just need to go tell Hotch that I'm done with my work." She patted Morgan's arm one more time but before he let go Reid spoke again.

"When was this decided? And why am I always the last to find these things out?"

"Two weeks ago, and you're the last to know because you decided to walk off when I was about to tell everyone." She shrugged. "Besides, before I joined the BAU I used to go every year. I get to hit the clubs, troll for guys at the beach, soak in a hot tub and did I mention trolling for guys? I finally get to relax and with Steph watching my dogs there is literally nothing to worry about. I'm not even taking my work phone with me." She let out a pleasant sigh, but then slipped out of Morgan's arms when she heard Hotch's door open. She turned to him, "Sir! I have completed my work, can I go now?" She asked nearly bouncing up and down.

"Yes, but Reid." He looked at Reid.

He managed to squeak out a "Yes, sir?" before Hotch continued.

"You're going with her. The paper work has been finished and as of now you are officially on protective duty." Hotch turned and went back to his office.

Kaitlin's eyes widened as she looked back and forth between Reid and the closed door of Hotch's office. "WHAT?" She shouted then turned around to look at Morgan, "Did he just say what I think he just said?"

"Yup." He nodded then leaned into whisper, "But at least you'll have time alone with Reid, you could use this chance to make your move."

She blushed then hit him in the shoulder. She quickly turned and walked into Hotch's office. "Why are you sending Reid with me?" She demanded.

He looked at her, "For your protection, you seem like the type of person who attracts unwanted attention at a vacation spot."

"And how about the real reason?" She asked.

"He needs to learn to relax once in a while and you need to tell him about what you plan to do when you get back." His dark eyes bore into her, "You can't disappear on him and think that he won't go searching for you."

She raised her eyebrow, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

He shook his head, "You really think the rest of us haven't noticed the increase in casual touches between you two since you came back."

"What's wrong with that? I mean Morgan was just hugging me outside but you didn't seem to have a problem with that. Touch is just another tool for comfort." She told him, but some part of her argued with her own feelings. She knew what those feelings were, she's known since Reid got kidnapped and tortured by Tobias Hankel but she had squashed them and buried them deep within herself. Her love for Mikey keeping them locked away in the furthest reaches of her heart but now that he was gone she was having a hard time keeping there. She unconsciously fingered the silver chain at her throat which caused Hotch to snap her out of her reverie.

"It's been over a year since then…" He left the next couple of words silent but she knew he was telling her to move on.

"I won't use him like that, not again." She told him then as he was about to ask what she was talking about she walked out of the office. Then as she sighed she walked down the stairs, "I guess you're with me, Reid."

"Now that's not just cool, you two get to go to the beach while we sit here and work." Morgan threw his hands up in feigned exasperation.

"Well you probably have enough vacation time saved up; you could have come with me and been my wing man." She lightly punched his shoulder.

"The last time we all went on vacation, one of us got shot." He reminded her.

"And we all nearly died, I know but who knows next time it might be different." She shrugged and grabbed her bag off her desk. "Come on, pretty boy, we've got a long drive ahead of us and considering we've got to stop by your apartment and my house our arrival time just became an hour behind schedule."

"Why are we stopping off at my apartment?" He asked as he got up while grabbing his bag.

"Because I sincerely doubt that bag of yours has a pair of swim trunks in it." She smirked as she began to walk away, "Okay guys see you next Wednesday." She blew both Morgan and Prentiss kisses before she walked out of the bullpen as JJ and Garcia walked in.

"Hey, Kaitlin make sure he gets sunscreen." JJ told her.

"And plenty of water so he doesn't get heat stroke I know." She looked back at JJ and Garcia then blew them kisses too and Garcia blew one back at her.

"Be safe!" Garcia called after them.

"That goes for you two as well." Kaitlin waved as she and Reid got in the elevator.

Reid shifted a little bit, "Well I guess it's just going to be us for the next six days."

"Yup." She let the p pop.

He shifted again and this time she saw his hand shift towards her but he stopped himself, "You're angry about this, aren't you?"

She moved her hand towards his and gently laced her pinkie finger with his, "Just about Hotch not telling me ahead of time, that's all."

His posture seemed to relax, "Oh okay." The elevator door beeped as they reached the garage of the federal building and their hands separated. Every time they were left alone just the smallest of touches happened but when someone came they always separated enough so that they kept their little game secret.

As they walked she kept herself from thinking by texting Steph and telling her that she was coming home briefly. When she didn't respond back Kaitlin let out a small laugh causing Reid to look over at her and ask, "What?"

"Oh nothing much, I'm just thinking about how Steph will respond when she hears the door open while she has a boy in my house." Her laughter quickly died out and she frowned slightly, "I really hope they're not in my bed." He looked at her quizzically as she grabbed her keys and unlocked her forest green jeep's doors then popped open the trunk. She smiled, "You're bag, sir." He handed it to her and she gently laid it on top of her suitcase then closed the trunk.

They walked around the jeep and she placed her duffle bag into the back seat then went to the driver's seat. She put the key in the ignition and turned on the car then suddenly the first thing she heard blaring from the speakers was, "_Ohh, you touch my talala. Mmmm my ding ding dong._"

Her hand darted to the volume control and pushed down causing it to mute. She looked at Reid who was blinking. "Was that…?"

He watched as her face went scarlet. "Please don't ask…and please grab something to listen to when we get to your apartment."

He nodded, "There's more, isn't there?"

She looked back as she pulled out of the parking spot and drove out of the parking lot, "A couple that I can think of right now."

* * *

><p>Kaitlin waited in the jeep as Reid went inside his apartment. She had placed in a CD to pass the time to keep herself from thinking about how she was going to be spending the next six days with Reid alone. Six days…six days of relaxing suddenly turned into six days of watching what she wore or in this case what she didn't wear. With a sigh she tore off her coat and threw it into the back seat, six days alone with Reid…with no supervision.<p>

She groaned as she slumped forward and her head hit the steering wheel as she turned up the volume. The next six days had now become a test for her control. She looked at the CD case and suddenly knew, as she stared at the tiger on it, that she wasn't going to make it through these next six days. She tried to concentrate on the lyrics that blasted through the speakers, "_It was a thousand to one and a million to two. Time to go down in flames and I'm taking you closer to the edge. No I'm not saying I'm sorry! One day maybe we'll meet again._"

She stared at the car speakers and yelled, "You're not helping!"

She jumped when she heard a knock on the window and when she looked over she saw Reid standing there. She unlocked the doors as she ejected the CD and stuck in the case before he even had a chance to profile her on it. "You alright?" He asked as he got in.

"Yeah, just thinking too much that's all. Don't worry about it. Anyways you ready?" She stuck the CD case into a compartment on her door.

"Yeah, let's go."

"Kay, let's do this." She grinned and started the jeep.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin slammed the front door of her house open loudly and yelled, "Honey! I'm home!"<p>

Reid stayed back and admired the garden but even he heard it, "DAMNIT KAITLIN!"

The clattering of several dogs coming down the stairs followed angry footsteps as Kaitlin got taken out by the four dogs though she tilted her head back enough so that she could look at Reid. "You can come in you know."

He did know that after all it wasn't the first time she had brought him to this house, though he still felt wrong entering it. It was the house that Mikey had bought so that he and Kaitlin could start a family…together. He looked at her now and she was sitting up grinning towards the stairs.

"You're supposed to be on the road right now, what are you doing here?" Steph asked glaring down at Kaitlin while hugging her robe tightly closed.

"Well my boss decided that I'm not allowed to go on vacation without some protection." She waved backwards to Reid and he watched as Steph's face turned seven different shades of red as he waved slightly. "So I needed to come back and grab some more appropriate clothing."

"You're a terrible person! Why didn't you tell me?"

"I texted you. Twice. Once just when we were leaving and then I sent the other one half an hour ago and then I called you while I was on my way." Kaitlin stood and patted herself off.

"Would you believe me if I lost my phone?" Steph asked hesitantly.

Kaitlin raised an eyebrow, "You better not have that was expensive."

"It's inside the house…somewhere. It got lost during the initial…" She looked at Reid then whispered, "Scuffle."

"Alright, just make sure you find it and keep your bodily fluids off my couches."

Steph's forehead met the palm of her hand, "You are so not discrete, you know that right?"

"And my patio furniture…" Kaitlin looked back as she walked up the stairs, "And out of my bedroom."

Steph followed her, "That was one time! And we washed the sheets three times before you came home."

"I noticed." She noticed the open door to Steph's room then peered in and saw a very naked man tied up to her sister's bed.

She got in a good look before Steph realized what she was doing, "Kaitlin Louise! What are you doing?"

She smirked, "Well he's new and cute but I have some bad news for you…mine's cuter." She dodged as Steph went to smack her then backed up to her own room. She pulled a bag off of her bed and opened one of her drawers. She spoke, "I don't mind you bringing boys inside this house considering you're doing me a favor being here, but just remember to do what I asked."

"I know."

"What were they?"

"Get up in the morning, put the dogs out and throw a ball around so they don't dig up your flower beds. Then when it starts to warm up outside, take them out for a walk to the dog park then play for an hour, at least. Then before the sun sets take them out for another walk. I need to feed and water them twice a day. I know."

Kaitlin pulled away from the drawer after she stuffed several of her pajama bottoms into the bag then quickly changed clothes. She started to walk to the stairs, "And?"

Steph followed her down the stairs, "Lock up."

"Good." Kaitlin placed a quick kiss on her cheek, "Be safe. I'll have my personal phone on me all the time so call me if you need anything." She headed to the doorway and just as she was about to close the door she popped her head back inside, "Oh and Steph…safe sex is the best kind of sex." She closed the door and looked up at Reid.

"So I'm cuter?" He asked with a grin playing on his lips.

"Most definitely." She grinned back. "So you ready to get going?"

He nodded but looked at his watch, "There's no way we're going make it to check in on time if we drive all the way there today."

"That's why we're stopping at Raleigh on the way there and back." She unlocked the jeep and walked around then tossed her bag into the back as she got in.

"You really have done this a lot." He looked at her in amusement.

"Once a year I'd drive down with Lucy and we'd visit her family as much as her mother hated it." She bit her lip.

"Why does she hate you so much?" His curiosity won over his better judgment.

"Because I started sleeping with her son when I was eighteen and she didn't like finding out that everyone but her, knew." She spoke in a rush which cued Reid to stop asking.

"Oh…" He said quietly.

* * *

><p>The next four and a half hours were spent listening to classical music and had very little small chat. Reid waited in the jeep while Kaitlin managed to lie her way into getting them another room. He thought about how she would do it. Would she say that they were just coworkers? Or perhaps siblings? They could probably pass it off with a little acting; something that both of them were good at.<p>

He looked over when he heard a knock on the window and saw Kaitlin standing there. He pressed the button to roll the window down and she spoke, "Okay so I couldn't get another room but I could get a room with another bed. Is that okay with you?"

"Yeah that's fine." Even as he said it his heart was pounding as the realization of how alone they truly were finally set in.

He heard the trunk open and she called out to him, "You coming, Reid?"

"Yeah." He opened the jeep door and hopped out. But then he lost his footing and nearly stumbled into the car beside them.

"Are you alright?" She looked at him with a worried frown.

"I'm fine." But he winced when he walked over to her; his knee was acting up again.

"You sure?" The concern hadn't left her voice.

"It happens all time there's nothing to worry about."

"There's plenty to worry about, it could mean it's not healing properly."

"It's healing just fine!"

"At least let me wrap it when we get inside, please?"

"Fine." He grabbed his bag then started heading towards the doors.

"Reid!" She called after him but he didn't turn around then suddenly she remembered what she yelled in Vegas when Reid had met his father again, _"Angry kids get to have a time out outside!"_ Of course Rossi and Morgan looked at her and tried not to break out in laughter, Reid however hadn't found it quite as amusing and had pretty much ignored her for the remainder of their stay. "Good job, Katie, get him angry at you." She bit her lip and grabbed her stuff out of the jeep, locked it then followed him.

* * *

><p>They arrived at their room and Kaitlin unlocked it. She waited for Reid to walk in first then watched as he went to the far bed and sat down so she put her bags on the other one. She opened her duffle bag and pulled out a first aid kit. She grabbed the ice bag and looked at Reid, "I'm going to go get some ice, so start rolling up your pant leg." She told him in her best commanding voice. She frowned when he just nodded but instead of saying anything she just turned around and left.<p>

He watched as the door closed then leaned back until he was laying down, "This isn't going to make these next six days easier." He warned himself.

Kaitlin stared at her phone as she opened Facebook, as usual instead of speaking about her issues she posted a new status, '**Is being ignored =(.**' With that done she filled up the ice bag then quickly returned to the room.

She quietly opened the door but stopped when she saw Reid sitting with his good knee up and his arm wrapped around it. He had rolled up his pant leg as she had told him and as she looked him over her heart thudded loudly in her ears. He was beautiful and the worst part was that he didn't see it. She swallowed, "I got some ice."

He looked over at her as she walked over to the first aid kit and grabbed a tensor bandage from it then walked over to him. "Thanks."

She looked at him with surprise, "Oh you're talking to me again?"

"Yeah I got messages from Garcia, JJ and Emily telling me to stop ignoring you." He looked at her with a raised eyebrow and she flushed as she knelt in front of him.

"I wonder how that happened…can you lift your leg up a bit?" He did and she started wrapping the bandage around his knee.

"I'm sorry…about before." He paused and she waited for him to continue, "It's just that when you guys gets worried about me like that it makes me feel like a child…"

She smiled sadly, "Reid, I'm the eldest of three kids by ten years, if I knew how to worry any differently I would…but I'm sorry for making you feel that way." She looked up at him, "Am I wrapping it too tight?"

"No it's fine." She finished wrapping it then stuck the clasp in and stood as he began rolling down his pant leg.

"There that should do. So ice it and it should be easier to walk tomorrow." She went to her bed then started shifting through her things.

"You seem to know what you're doing." He placed the ice bag on his knee.

"After the move I joined track during high school and college. I've screwed up my knee so many times I lost count."

He looked at her, "Before you moved to Sliver Springs where did you live?"

She froze for the briefest of moments then looked at him, "I'm going to convenience store do you want anything in particular?"

"Coffee?"

"Five sugars two cream right?" He nodded, "And I was talking about food."

"Nothing in particular."

"So you'll eat whatever it is I get you?" She cocked an eyebrow at him and he frowned.

"I'll eat it."

"Okay I'll be back soon." She grabbed her purse then left.

* * *

><p>They spent the rest of their night quietly watching a documentary on serial killers then they ended up trading facts about different killers that they had profiled over the years. Hours had passed since they went to bed and suddenly Kaitlin woke up in a cold sweat. She threw her legs over the bed with a sigh then padded lightly to the bathroom taking her go bag with her. She stared over at Reid to make sure that he was still asleep and he was.<p>

Reid woke the moment he heard the water running in the bathroom. He rolled over to see Kaitlin's bed empty. He watched as the door opened and she silently walked out while placing her bag on top of her suitcase. "Is everything alright?" He asked.

"Sorry I didn't mean to wake you." She crawled back into her bed then rolled so that she faced him. "I just had a nightmare that's all."

"What about?"

"The same thing that always wakes me up every time. Blood." She paused, "It got to me, finding out that he splashed blood on me…" She relaxed a bit, "I'm just glad that it was pig's blood rather than human blood."

He yawned, "So what do normally do when you have nightmare?"

"Go back to sleep Reid." She rolled back over onto her back and stared at the ceiling until she heard shuffling and then looked over to see him walking around the bed, "What are you doing?"

"Well I'm not going to be able to sleep unless I know you're asleep but because you're the type who thinks too much I know you're not going to go back to sleep. So both of us won't get any sleep tonight."

"That doesn't explain why you're crawling into bed with me."

"Okay fine," He stopped at the end of the bed, "You find human touch comforting, so I figure when you have this particular reoccurring nightmare you'd crawl into bed with your sister when the feel of your dogs wasn't enough anymore but because she usually has…company in her bed, you're still used to falling asleep to the smell of men."

She groaned and flipped down the other side of the covers, "Well come on then."

He slipped under the covers and took her hand. She squeezed his hand gently and he slid closer. She looked at him then slid just a bit closer which caused him to slide close enough so that their feet grazed and he shuddered. "You're feet are freezing!" He hissed.

"Yeah they're never really warm." As she said it she closed the rest distance between them. He turned on his side and slid his free arm around her waist. She rolled so that she was facing him and his hand slid down her back as she did it which caused her to shiver. She looked up at him, "Hey, Reid?"

"Yeah?"

"Why'd we get an extra bed if we ended up in the same one anyways?"

"Because neither one of us thought we'd end up in the same bed together."

She laughed softly as she slid her hand across his arm then down onto his side and then finally down to his waist where it drew tiny circles. "Spencer…" She looked up at him as he looked down at her, "Thank you, but if you ever profile me again…"

"Yeah, I know." He didn't need to hear the rest of the threat to know what she was about to say. "I know." He murmured again as they fell asleep.


	11. Chapter 11

(A/N: Yay! Chapter eleven! And it didn't take me a week to get it out either! Woo! Yay! Okay...I'm done, enjoy)

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds belongs to its legal owners

Chapter Eleven:

Kaitlin awoke to the buzzing of her phone and she went to roll to grab it off the nightstand but the arm around her waist tightened preventing her from moving. She looked up to see the still sleeping Dr. Reid and felt blush cover her face as she tried to remember what happened during the night. She paused as the memories came back and her mouth formed the shape of an 'O' as she remembered though it didn't explain how her legs got tangled up in his or how she was close enough to give him a hickey without really needing to move.

She heard her phone stop vibrating then figured she had about five minutes to get to it before it started going off again. She slowly untangled their legs as she watched his face for any indication of him waking up which was the last thing she wanted at this moment being as scantily clad as she was. Yes she had gone to bed in a pair of pajama pants but when she woke up covered in sweat she had changed into a completely different type of pajama set. Her lace boxers left her little more than decently covered which made her glad Reid hadn't noticed when he had crawled into bed last night.

She shifted slightly and gently took his arm into her hands then brought it over to him. His hand began searching for something which caused her to take it and bring it to her lips for the briefest of moments. Then she grabbed the pillow she was using and wrapped his hand around it. She watched as he hugged it to him then she slipped out of the bed noiselessly as she grabbed her phone and suitcase.

* * *

><p>Reid awoke to the soft humming of a song he didn't know. He opened his eyes and he saw Kaitlin brushing out her hair. His eyes roamed her, from her long brown hair to her dark blue shirt to her blue jeans and lengthy legs, all of which equally accented her curves to near perfection. He paused and blinked when he realized that he was watching her as something more than a profiler. 'As a man.' He thought as he buried his head into his pillow.<p>

He looked up when he felt the bed shift and there she was, laying down looking at him. She smiled, "Oh, good morning sleeping beauty. Here I thought I was going to have to kiss you awake." She grinned while he groaned.

"Kaitlin, I just woke up, I haven't even had my first cup of coffee yet can we keep the teasing to a minimum please?"

"Fine, I just thought it'd be the most pleasant way of waking you up because check out is in an hour. So I figured, you get ready, we check out then we grab some coffee and some doughnuts then we hit the road. Sounds good?"

"Sounds good." He nodded then got out of bed.

* * *

><p>An hour later they were on the road then three and a half hours later they were driving into Myrtle Beach. Kaitlin looked at the jeep's clock, which read 12:30 so she looked at Reid. "Since we have time before check in do you want to get something to eat? I know this place with the most amazing food."<p>

"Sure." He watched as she smiled and began to drive again.

In the matter of minutes Reid found himself staring at a sign for a building called, 'The Moonlight Café.' He watched as Kaitlin came around the jeep and he looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Trust me, Reid; you will never taste food as magical as the stuff they serve here."

"That's what I'm worried about."

"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked as she opened the door. She removed her sunglasses as she looked around for something. When she noticed that the place was almost empty, except for a few people she recognized as regulars, she nodded to herself.

He noticed her nod and sudden horror filled him as he realized she had the same grin on her face as when she had opened the door to her house yesterday. "Kaitlin!" He tried to stop her but she had already begun.

"Honey! I'm home!" She called loud enough for the people in the kitchen to hear her.

The regulars around the café looked at her then smiled, all of them called out their greetings and she waved as Reid sighed. The two watched as an elderly gentleman walked out from the kitchen with a huge smile on his face. "Kaitlin! It's been far too long, my dear."

"Gray! How are you?" She smiled from ear to ear.

"Well, business is great as ever." He walked out from behind the counter and hugged her.

"Yeah well two cute girls in maid outfits will do that for a place." Reid raised an eyebrow at that.

"So who's your friend?" Gray asked with mischievous eyes.

"Don't get any ideas, old man; he's a co-worker who my boss assigned to me when he decided that I needed protection. Gray this is Dr. Spencer Reid from my team at the BAU, Reid this is Gray, he works…" She earned a scolding look from him, "I mean he owns the café."

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Reid told him with a small smile.

"Likewise. Kaitlin never brings anyone with her when she comes down for her visits. Please take a seat. I'll start a fresh part of coffee." He told them as he began moving to behind the counter again.

"Hey, Gray. Is she here today? Because I could have sworn she said she would be." Kaitlin watched him.

"Yeah, she's just putting some new creations in the oven then she'll be right out." He started a new pot of coffee then went back into the kitchen.

"She?" Reid asked as she led him to a table.

"You'll see." She told him as she sat down facing towards the kitchen. Five minutes later her face lit up and she smiled widely then waved, "Lucy!"

"Katie!" Lucy called as she grabbed a couple of menus. She walked over to the table, "Well I'm officially on my lunch break until the cakes in the oven are done so until then I'm all yours." She noticed Reid sitting there and she smiled at him as she handed them the menus, "Hello Dr. Reid, it's good to see you again."

"It's good to see you again as well, Ms. Langley." He gave her a shy smile.

Kaitlin moved over and Lucy sat down, "Please call me Lucy."

"So tell me Lucy, what exactly do you have in store for us this weekend?" Kaitlin asked.

"Well if you're willing to be testers I have a few new cakes in the oven. Then we've got dinner tonight at the usual spot, then tomorrow we have a spa treatment planned then we hit the club and on Sunday we chill at the beach."

"What sort of new cakes are we talking about?"

"Cakes I figure you two might find amusing." The two shared a smile.

"Well at least dessert will be more exciting than usual." Kaitlin's eyes twinkled then opened her menu, "Well anyways let's eat I'm famished."

* * *

><p>They passed the time quickly while talking then Lucy had left to get back to work, though she told them to stay as long as they like. They had their cakes, which got Kaitlin laughing when she realized that her team of profilers had been the inspiration for them.<p>

Reid watched Kaitlin and in the past five years since they met he had never seen her so relaxed and at ease. Then when she looked at her watch she noticed the time and all the relaxation seeped out of her. "Oh crap we've got to go check in!"

"Yeah we've been here for three hours forty six minutes and thirty three seconds, during which you've had a salad, three milkshakes, four pieces of cake and six doughnuts." He watched as she stood and looked her over once, surely there had to be some explanation as to where all that food went but from what he could see there wasn't one.

"Judge my black hole of a stomach later Reid!" She flushed as she went to the cash register. She quietly talked to Gray as she paid then looked back at Reid, "Is there anything specific you want to take with us to eat at the hotel?" He shook his head, "Then we'll take one of each."

His jaw dropped, "You're still planning to eat more?"

"Leave me alone, I'm vacation." She paid then waited as Gray grabbed one of every type of dessert they had.

Reid walked over and watched as the bags started filling up, "You're intending to eat all of those by yourself?"

"Well I was thinking that you might help me but if you don't want to I will probably eat them all."

He looked at her with a raised eyebrow, "Do I even want to know how you intend to do that?"

"Probably not. But Lucy might come to help, who knows. Each vacation differs." She shrugged and she started grabbing bags.

"Kaitlin, here." Gray handed her a small bag of cookies, "They're your favorite, my treat to you."

"Thanks!" She kissed his cheek.

Lucy poked her head out of the kitchen doors and spoke, "Hey, woman!"

"Yeah?"

"The usual hotel?"

"Yeah."

"Kay, I'll meet you there at six. So I'll text you when I get off so I know which room number. Dinner reservations are at six thirty."

"Alright." Kaitlin smiled.

"Okay, see you then." Lucy grinned and went back into the kitchen.

Gray looked at Kaitlin again, "You really shouldn't worry her so much."

"Worry her how?"

"Not calling her for a month after Mikey passed away, for a start."

"I was potty training puppies what more do you people want?" She paused then spoke quietly enough that Reid and Gray barely heard her, "Besides…I'm better now."

Gray smiled gently, "I know, dear, I know. Anyways you kids should get going, it's getting late and surely you want to get yourselves settled in before your dinner date."

"Alright, see ya Uncle Gray." She waved as she grabbed the rest of the bags and started walking outside.

"Uncle?" Reid asked once they were in the jeep.

She smiled as she started pulling out, "Well he's Lucy's uncle I just started calling him that when he got us part time jobs here during high school, you know before I started preferring guns over being a girl." She grabbed the small bag of cookies offered one to him, "Cookie?" She took one and held it in her teeth as he grabbed one from the bag.

"And you're still eating." He shook his head.

She placed the bag in one of the cup holders and bit into her cookie, grabbed the remains with her free hand, then swallowed. "You seemed surprised by this, I'm constantly eating while working and yet you're surprised by how much I'm eating here?"

"Well you usually space out your snacks out in between hours, but that was all in the course of three. It's just…wow." He paused, "How are you managing to keep your figure?"

"Do you know how many calories I burn during my workouts?" She paused, "Then there's taking the dogs out, I get more exercise with them then I do at the gym."

"But…"

"Yeah I know that was kind of over kill…that's partially the reason why Steph's living with me. I tend to overdo the junk food; do you remember when I started at the BAU? I had no idea how to cook something remotely healthy."

He laughed, "I remember, you had to ask Gideon to teach you."

"Ask? Please it was definitely more like begging." She looked at him from the corner of her eye as she pulled into a hotel parking lot.

* * *

><p>They got to their hotel room and when Kaitlin opened the door she let an, "Oh my God…" slip from her mouth. "Reid do you see this?" She walked in awe, "It's even better then I remember."<p>

"It definitely something." He looked at her, "You were planning to rent this room for one person?" There were two rooms, this one was more for living in and he assumed that the one behind the closed door was a bedroom.

"Had to otherwise I wouldn't have gotten a hot tub." She went to the balcony, "Reid, come here." He walked over, "Look at that."

"It's the same Atlantic ocean we can see from Virginia." He shrugged then went back inside.

She sighed and slumped onto the railing, "Just so you know, you're no fun." She went back inside then opened the door to the bedroom. "Look at this bed!" He heard the initial flop then walked in.

She looked tiny compared to the bed, "That bed is huge."

She bit her lip, "You know, you and I could both sleep here since it's big enough."

He felt his heart speed up, but he kept his poker face on, "I don't think that's such a good idea."

"And why not? We slept together last night. What's so different about this?"

"Last night wasn't intentional this is premeditated."

"Fine." She got up then went to the bathroom that was attached to the room.

"Hmm. The shower's see through here too, huh?" He muttered. "Well this one has the hot tub so I guess it's yours."

"The shower's big enough for two, we could share. Or use it at the same time which ever happens first." She watched as his poker face broke and he blushed. "Yes! I broke it, today has now been a success."

He changed the subject to try and calm himself down, "So where are we going for dinner?"

"A quaint Japanese restaurant a few miles from here. I'm getting me some tempura and udon. And since you've mastered how to use chopsticks it shouldn't be a problem right?"

"Kaitlin," He stared down at her seriously, "If you tell me that the entire reason you went on this trip was for tempura and udon…I'm taking us home."

"It's not!" She pouted.

* * *

><p>Hours passed then were leaving the restaurant. "Tempura and udon, nothing is a better combination then that." Kaitlin sighed contently with her arm around Lucy's waist and her hand in Reid's.<p>

"Well kids I need to get going." Lucy told them, "Have fun."

Kaitlin's hand on her waist prevented her from going anywhere, "Let me drive you home."

"No, it's just around the corner. Besides there's still some sunlight, I'll be fine." She slipped from Kaitlin's grasp easily, "I'll call you on my home phone so that you know I got home safely okay?"

"Okay." Despite the fact that she had said it, the firm line that her lips were pressed into gave away her displeasure.

"I'll be fine!" Lucy called as she began running towards the corner. "See you tomorrow!"

Kaitlin watched as she turned the corner then looked up at Reid, "Can we make a couple of stops before we head back?"

"Yeah."

* * *

><p>They had gone to rent movies, Kaitlin picked out two and Reid picked out a third. Then she drove them to a grocery store which made him raise an eyebrow again, "More food?" He asked.<p>

"Just a few things, are you coming in or not?" She asked as she got out.

He sighed, "Yeah, just to make sure you watch how much you spend in there."

She pouted, "Your faith in me hurts."

"You're the one who has a fridge almost full of desserts back at the hotel." He hesitated in taking her hand though it had almost become second nature for him to hold it when the others weren't around, though she usually took his into hers first. They walked in and she grabbed a basket then she led him to the fruits aisle. "Well fruits are promising."

"Strawberries and bananas are on my list, do you want anything?" She looked back at him as she grabbed a batch of bananas.

"Oranges?" He asked, "For breakfast."

"Alright, though they're hard to peel." They grabbed a couple of oranges; they then proceeded by grabbing strawberries, whipped cream, chocolate and plastic utensils.

* * *

><p>They started watching one of the movies Kaitlin had chosen; it was a remake of a classic horror film. They had most of the desserts laid out on the bed in front of them as they picked at them, though the chocolate covered strawberries and whipped cream got the most attention. Despite Reid's plan to not get anywhere near the giant bed she had managed to talk him into watching the movie on the bed in their sleep wear.<p>

He saw out of the corner of his eye as she jumped when a ghost attacked one of the people who were currently trapped in the house. "You find that jump worthy?" He asked as he grabbed another strawberry.

"Judge me all you want Dr. Reid, but I really don't like ghosts. Unlike zombies they can't be easily killed, you need to exorcize them rather than just shoot them in the head." As much as she hated zombies, she hated ghosts more.

"Then why did you choose this movie?" He looked at her skeptically.

"Because it's a good movie!" She jumped when his phone went off.

His brow furrowed as he looked at the senders name, "It's Garcia." He paused the movie, "Try to remember how to breathe while I answer this."

'**How****'****s it going?**' Garcia asked.

'**Fine, we****'****re watching movies.**' He texted back.

His phone went off again almost immediately, '**Anything juicy happen?**'

'**Of course not! It****'****s just a horror movie****…****there is nothing juicy about horror.**'

Kaitlin looked at him, "You're getting good at that."

His phone went off again, '**I bet she****'****s jumping, you could use that as an excuse to hold her hand. To make her feel safe.**'

He looked at the text for a while then put his phone over on the night stand causing Kaitlin to raise an eyebrow, "You're not going to answer that?"

"No need to." He turned the movie back on, though the next time she jumped he did take her hand.

* * *

><p>They were nearing the end of their second movie when Reid's phone went off again. He looked at it and read, '<strong>So what<strong>**'****s happening now?**'

'**We****'****re nearly done the second movie, Garcia. Nothing new is happening, though she started crying****…**'

He waited for the next text to come and when it did he stared at it then shifted his gaze to Kaitlin, who was still crying. He mustered all of his courage then his hand went to her chin and turned it towards him as he shifted his upper body towards her. When she was close enough he brought his lips to just under her eyes where the tears were dropping down to. He gently kissed them away while madly blushing.

When he was done, he sat back so that he was facing the TV but made no indication to look at her. She stayed frozen in place until she realized what the most recent text must have said. She went over to her phone then sent her own text to Garcia, '**Garcia, stop giving him ideas!**'

Reid's phone went off one more time, '**Sorry, lover boy, you****'****re on your own from now on.**' Kaitlin and Reid looked at each other and started laughing.

When their movie was finished Kaitlin spoke, "Are we done with these?" She gestured to the remaining desserts on the bed.

"Well considering that you're the one who's eating most of them…" Before he could finish his sentence she cut him off.

"Hey, half of those wrappings are yours." She pointed to one of the piles that was in between them but was closer to him then her. "Plus all of those strawberries you ate."

"What do you mean half? I had only had five compared to your ten which is only a third of the total."

She rolled her eyes, "Anyways are you done? I don't want them going bad if we pass out."

"Yeah, I think so."

"Good." She began pile the leftovers onto the trays she had brought with them then looked at him, "Can you bring the strawberries and whipped cream?" She balanced a tray on her head then grabbed the remaining two in her hands.

"Are you going to be alright with that? Your balance is worse than mine."

"This is nothing." She slowly walked to the door then looked at him from the corner of her eye, "You coming?"

"Yeah." He grabbed the remaining tray and followed her. He watched as she placed the trays in her hands down on the counter then removed the one on her head.

She started to the put the remaining desserts into the fridge and spoke, "The strawberries go in the fridge but leave the whipped cream by the sink. The bowls need to be rinsed out." She finished with the desserts then threw the wrappers into the trash.

He finished putting the strawberries away then looked at her as she began rinsing the first bowl out. "Fourteen cakes in one day how are you not sick yet?" She stuck her finger into the other bowl while sweeping up some whipped cream then stuck it onto his face. His mouth dropped open as he touched his cheek, "Did you just-"

"Yes…yes I did." She watched as he stuck his finger into the bowl and pulled out some whipped cream, "Hey, Reid. Don't you dare…I do not need to get acne from that." She dodged his hand as he approached her until she was pinned up against the wall. "More importantly," She caught his wrist in between her hands and she brought his hand to her mouth, "Don't." She emphasized this by licking some of the whipped cream off of his finger, "Waste." Another lick. "Whipped cream." She licked the remains off of his finger but didn't let go of his wrist.

Their eyes locked on the others, neither one daring to blink. As the moment edged on Kaitlin felt her legs start to tremble as she fought to let go of his wrist. 'Come on, Kaitlin, you're not a hormonal teenager anymore! Let go of his wrist…'

Reid stared into those storm cloud grey eyes and thought about how Morgan would have handled the situation. Morgan would have already pulled her to him then proceeded to kiss her senseless, after all it was classic alpha male behavior but he wasn't an alpha male. He was Spencer Reid, the BAU's resident genius who was awkward around women and has only ever truly kissed two women before, one of which was standing in front of him.

Kaitlin took in a deep breath, closed her eyes which broke contact with his then let go of his wrist. When her hands were firmly behind her she opened her eyes but saw a flicker of something she couldn't read in his. She swallowed then spoke, "I need to finish with these bowls."

He smiled though she could tell it was forced, "And I should get this stuff off my face." He went into the small bathroom just outside of the kitchen area.

When she heard the water running her legs give out on her. She leaned her head against the wall and whispered, "Damn it Kaitlin."


	12. Chapter 12

(A/N: First things first: Long chapter is LONG! Okay now that that's out of the way! Chapter twelve! YAY! Enjoy. =D)

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds belongs to it's legal owners

Chapter Twelve:

Kaitlin woke to the quiet sound of music in her semiconscious state, her hand felt warm from where it held Reid's in the middle of the bed. Her free hand moved to the nightstand, where she had left her phone the previous night, as she opened her eyes and brought the phone in front of her face. She squinted to read the name of the caller then recognized it and quickly pressed the green button as she looked at Reid to make sure he was still asleep, thankfully he was. "Lucy?" She whispered as she slowly untangled her hand from Reid's.

"SO…I got up at six…Let me emphasize this for you, I, Lucy Langley, got up at SIX in the MORNING on a WEEKEND so WE could leave by SEVEN and be back before NINE. But now I'm sitting in MY car outside YOUR hotel waiting for YOU. Weren't YOU the one who thought of this plan? So why am I STILL waiting for YOU at SEVEN THIRTY?" Lucy's tone was irritated.

Kaitlin climbed out of bed quietly as she pleaded for forgiveness in a hushed tone, "I'm sorry, we were watching movies and I fell asleep before I had a chance to set the alarm." She grabbed her suitcase and went into the bathroom.

"Why are you whispering?" Lucy paused and Kaitlin could nearly see the Cheshire grin form on her face. "I get it; Reid's in the same room as you isn't he?" There was a fake gasp, "You did something dirty last night, didn't you?"

"What? No!" Kaitlin felt blush heat her face as she turned on the tap and began carefully splashing water on her face as she tried to keep her phone from getting wet.

"You can't lie to me, Katie-Marie. I want all the dirty details…ALL of them."

"Despite the fact that there is none, you still want something, huh? How about? I need to pee and take a shower so I'll be down in fifteen."

"Fine, you can tell me in the car then." Lucy hung up.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin walked out of the bathroom and Reid stirred then muttered still half asleep, "What's going on?"<p>

"I just need to take care of something, I'll be back by noon so go back to sleep." She gently kissed the top of his head and watched his eyes close again. She headed to the door then grabbed the 'do not disturb sign' as she silently slipped out then hung it on the doorknob before closing it.

* * *

><p>"So you're telling me that nothing interesting happened?" Lucy sulked.<p>

"Oh so my sleeping in the same bed as Spencer fucking Reid for the past two nights doesn't count as interesting?" Kaitlin ran a hand through her hair.

"What are you complaining about? You get to sleep in the same bed as Spencer Reid…and do other things with that same Spencer Reid."

"What other things? We've only kissed once and that was over a year ago…and if I have any say in it, it won't happen again."

"Why not? He's smart, kind, adorable and from what you describe a great kisser."

Kaitlin paused and looked at her, "Because I am the ruiner of lives that's why!" She through her hands up.

"Oh really? 'The ruiner of lives'? That's a new one. What makes you think that?"

"Mikey, Casey, Leo, Lillian Matthews, Kathleen Anders, Abigail Winters, Emma Wellington, Alison Mackenzie and Cecilia Thomson…" The back of Lucy's hand met Kaitlin's cheek leaving a bright red mark there. "The hell was that for?"

"Either quit blaming yourself or get the hell out of my car and walk the rest of the way." Lucy pulled over, "You had nothing to do with that. You did not kill them, Casey Ridenger did."

"I'm not saying I killed them, I'm saying that I ruined their lives…although I did kill Casey." She shook her head, "The point is that their lives were ruined because of me. Leo got arrested, Mikey died, and those girls died because they looked like me."

"And now I understand why Steph moved in with you."

"Why?"

"Because you're an idiot." Lucy pulled away from the curb then started driving again.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin knelt and put the flowers in front of the headstone. "I'll give you two sometime alone." Lucy told her then turned as she nodded.<p>

"Hi Mikey," Kaitlin whispered, "I'm sorry I couldn't come earlier, the BAU is as busy as always. But I'll be able to visit more often once the new semester starts at the FBI academy…"

Lucy watched as Kaitlin's forest green jeep pulled up then watched as Reid got out, "She really has bad instincts if she didn't even realize you were following us the entire way."

"You noticed?" He asked as he walked up.

"Kind of hard not to so what are you doing here?"

"I'm here for the same reason you're here, I'm watching over someone important to me."

He watched as a grin appeared on her face and instantly regretted saying anything, "How important?"

He looked up and away from her, "Well she's my co-worker and friend."

"And?"

"And what?"

"You're telling me that there's nothing else? As a man rather than a profiler?"

He flushed, "What? What makes you think that?"

"Oooh…there is! Is it just physical attraction? Which, I mean, you get no judgment from me because I can understand that. But if it is stay away from MY Kaitlin." Lucy's lips pursed together as she glared at him.

He looked away, "Well you obviously have this under control, I'll …um…be heading back to the hotel now." He got into the jeep before she could say anything else.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin stared down at the headstone, "Hey, Mikey? Can I ask you something? Did you know about them…my feelings for Reid?" She paused then sighed, "You know, now that you're gone, they're resurfacing…but after what happened. I'm terrified to put it lightly…" She took a breath, "I just don't want to lose anyone important to me again but…that's the disadvantage of this job." She looked back at Lucy, who was waiting patiently by the gate, then back at the grave, "I should go, Lucy's waiting for me…but I'll try to come again soon." She stood and walked over to the gate.<p>

"You done?" Lucy looked up.

"Yeah, now what was this about shopping?"

"Well…this cute little boutique opened up and it's just your style."

"Oh great, like I need more clothes." Kaitlin laughed as they linked arms and went to the car.

* * *

><p>Reid watched as the clock ticked by, it was almost noon which was when Kaitlin said she'd be back by. He turned on the TV when he heard the lock click; he heard the rattling of bags even before the door opened. "Sorry I'm late!" Kaitlin cried as she entered the room nearly dropping of one of the bags she was holding.<p>

"You're just on time." He told her as he walked over to her and grabbed a couple of the bags she was holding. "Have fun?" He asked with a raised brow.

"Well Lucy brought me to this little strip almost right around the corner so normally I wouldn't do this. But…"

"But?"

"They were all so cute! I found a really cute dress for tonight too…by the way I am not proud of this either so don't tell the others."

"Is this everything?"

She looked up at him bit her lip, "Not exactly…Most of it's still in Lucy's car…she's going to wash them so I can wear them while we're here…These are mostly shoes and tights." She laid on the bed with the bags spread around her, as she ran her hand down face. "What am I supposed to do with eight different pairs of high heels?"

"Eight?" He watched as she sat up and crossed her legs, "Well I guess you really are a woman after all, I need to tell Morgan this."

She feigned shock, "What gave it away? Was it my ample bosom?" As she spoke her hands accented what she talking about, "Or my delicious curves? Or perhaps my long luscious legs?" This time she lifted up her skirt a bit as his eyes followed her hands. When he looked up again she saw look pass through his eyes which caused her to shiver pleasantly as her mind warned her, 'Kaitlin, he may not be an alpha male, but he is still a man. Please stop teasing him before you bite off more than you chew.'

As she looked into his eyes she thought about that night at the safe house and she knew that he was thinking about the same thing. She felt her hand twitch in anticipation as it started to slide down her leg and when it reached her knee she felt it start to inch towards where his hand was. When she was almost there and had firmly decided to pull him down towards her then proceed to kiss him senseless (or at least until he couldn't breathe) her stomach growled.

Her hand shot back to her knee and she started laughing, "Sorry, I didn't want to eat without you."

He reached a hand out to her then helped her off the bed, "Let's go get something to eat." As they walked to the hotel room door he realized something and he looked at her, "Kaitlin," She made a noise to indicate that she was listening and he continued, "Who says 'bosom' anymore?"

She looked at him and grinned, "Only the classiest of ladies, obviously."

* * *

><p>Reid lay on the couch staring at the ceiling as he waited for Kaitlin to get ready. After they had gone for lunch, she and Lucy had gone to the spa. They had invited him but he politely declined. Four hours, and all of the books he had brought with him read, twice, later Kaitlin had returned. She had more bags in her hands but had instantly avoided his help and told him not to disturb her as she got ready.<p>

He grabbed his phone when it started ringing, "Reid here."

"Hey, pretty boy, how's it going?" Morgan asked over the line.

"Fine, though I now know all the lyrics to 'Man! I feel like a woman!'" Reid looked at the surprisingly thin wall.

"What's she doing torturing you?"

"No just getting ready to go to a club." He said it with a slight tone of disgust.

"Hey you're the one who said, 'If the opportunity arises, I want to try again.'"

"I know."

"More importantly how are things going just 'fine'? You're alone with a woman who you've been pining for over a year now."

"I have not."

Morgan ignored him and kept talking, "Make a move already."

"And how do you suggest I do that?"

"You're going to the club with her, aren't you? Dance with her."

Reid watched as the bedroom door opened and Kaitlin poked her head out, she looked at him quizzically and he mouthed, 'Morgan.'

Her brow furrowed and she walked out holding two different pairs of heels. He looked at her and his phone slipped from his hand while Morgan continued to give him advice. His eyes took in everything, her long curls cascaded down past the low cut of her black dress which hugged her curves and stopped just past her mid-thigh flaunting the smooth length of her legs. He blinked a couple of times before realizing why she had come out. He pointed to the ones on the left then grabbed his phone. She blew him a kiss and quickly went back into the bedroom.

"Sorry, Morgan, I dropped my phone. What were you saying?" Reid asked.

"You dropped the phone?" He heard a chuckle and then some giggles.

His lips formed a straight line, "You have me on speaker phone don't you?"

"Sorry, Spence." JJ told him, "We're all really curious."

"Hey Reid, tomorrow might be your night." Garcia told him.

His brow furrowed, "Why's that?"

"Because it's the fourth of July." Prentiss told him.

"I know that, what's the big deal?"

Morgan sighed, "I keep forgetting that you weren't allowed to read her file. Tomorrow's Kaitlin's birthday."

"What?"

"Yeah, that's why she's using her vacation time." JJ spoke.

"Guys Hotch is coming!" Prentiss warned them.

"Quick grab the files!" JJ told them.

"Reid we gotta go! Don't worry about Kaitlin, we've got you covered. So call us if you need any advice." Garcia told him.

"Alright, lover boy. Keep us updated." Morgan hung up his phone and Reid was left wondering what just happened.

Kaitlin poked her head out again, "What was that about?"

"They just needed some help with a case that's all." He looked her over again and she now had stripped nylons on, "So…um. You look…"

She frowned, "That bad, huh?"

"What? No! Not at all, you look stunning." He flushed as the words left his mouth.

She blushed and smiled, "Thank you." There was a knock on the door, "Oh that must be, Lucy." She walked over to the door but sidestepped when she opened it.

Lucy pounced into the room but when she didn't crash into Kaitlin as she had expected to she failed her landing. "That's not fair! You're not supposed to dodge!"

"Then stop pouncing on me every time I get dressed up." Kaitlin looked down at her as she closed the door. "Anyways do you have what I asked for?"

Lucy opened the bag she had brought then pulled out a wrapped package, "Washed dried and even ironed."

Kaitlin took the package then ran her thumb over the soft tissue paper covering it. "Anyways, Reid…"

He looked up from the book he had picked up, "Yeah."

"Your turn."

"What?" A look of horror dawned on his face as he realized what that grin on her face meant. "No."

Her bottom lip jutted out a bit, "Please?"

"No."

"But…but its silk!" She undid the wrapping and pulled the burgundy button up shirt out then showed him.

He watched as her eyes widened and her bottom lip gutted out into a full on pout causing him to let out a groan. "Fine." He got off the couch, walked over and took the shirt from her then went into the bathroom to change.

* * *

><p>Reid had been talked into many things in his life, some great, like joining the BAU, some terrible, like listening to Harper Hillman. This was something he didn't know what to classify as; he couldn't decide whether it was good or bad. He had put on the shirt, but then Kaitlin had talked him into letting her do something with his hair. She had left his partial curls the way they were but had pulled back the top layer into an elastic. When she had counted how many women did a double take when he walked by in the restaurant she totaled seventeen.<p>

They were at the club now; he had managed to secure a small table off to the side while Kaitlin and Lucy went to go get drinks. He saw them approach then raised an eyebrow when he noticed that they each had two drinks in their hands. "A coke for our designated driver," Lucy placed a drink in front of him.

"Thanks." He looked at Kaitlin who was already sipping one of the drinks she had brought. "Is someone else joining us?"

"No…it's just a ritual she does." Lucy took a sip of whatever it was she was drinking.

He looked confused so Kaitlin put her drink down, "This one is to get my body used to the consumption of alcohol again and this one," She brushed the other glass, "is to get me thoroughly plastered."

"But…you don't drink." His brow furrowed, "At least not alcohol."

"There is a lot you don't know about me, Dr. Reid. The fact is that I don't drink around men…" She seemed like she wanted to say more but stopped, she wasn't that intoxicated just yet.

He nodded; he wasn't going to disagree with her. The fact was that he didn't know much about her so he wasn't going to question it. He watched in silence as Kaitlin finished off her drink, while she and Lucy talked about something. He watched was she placed the glass down on the table then stared at the other one. She already had a light sway to her posture, and that's when he figured out why she never went drinking with the team, she was a lightweight.

She continued to stare down the glass, until Lucy spoke, "Katie, just do it already."

"What's wrong with that one?" Reid asked.

"It's three parts spiced rum, one part coke." Kaitlin took a breath.

"The song's about to change." Lucy warned her.

She nodded, "Right." She picked up the glass and slid the straw to the side. She pressed the glass to her lips then quickly finished it off while Lucy whispered encouragingly, "chug." Kaitlin placed the glass down but didn't look up from it.

"Kaitlin?" Reid asked cautiously, afraid that she was going to fall over.

Lucy shushed him as the song changed then suddenly Kaitlin looked up, her face tinted red. "I love this song!" She squeaked, "Reid, come dance with me?"

It took him less than two seconds to realize that she was drunk. He shook his head, "You and I both know that I have two left feet. Sorry."

She frowned, "It's alright." She looked at Lucy then took her hands, "Lucy?"

Lucy brought her hands up to her lips, "You know I'm not drunk enough for that yet, sweetie. Come and get me in a couple of drinks."

"Okay!" She stuck up her pinkie, "Pinkie promise?"

Lucy locked their pinkies together, "Promise."

Kaitlin sang in a childish tone, "Break the promise and death awaits you by swallowing a thousand needles."

The shock plastered on Lucy's face nearly got Kaitlin laughing, "Why do I get such a violent death?"

He watched as Kaitlin skipped away to the dance floor and bit his lip to keep himself from breaking out in facts about violent deaths. He paused then looked at Lucy, "Is she usually like that?"

"Every time." She looked at Kaitlin's empty glasses, "I'm going to go get her another drink. Keep an eye on her would you?"

"Umm…okay?" He wasn't entirely sure how to do that considering it was Saturday and the club was bound to fill up quickly but once Lucy left his eyes easily found Kaitlin.

He was right about the club filling up quickly but of course he was usually right. He was able to keep an eye on Kaitlin quite easily because she never ventured to far into the crowd. As he watched her he noticed something, if someone wanted to dance they came to her never the other way around and he could see why; her outfit had been stunning on its own but now, as she danced, it was more than hypnotic it was seductive. She'd move her hips a certain way then the heads would turn. She'd run her hands over her body subtly and a couple of men would approach her. Then she'd bite her lip and have them hooked on her as she'd lightly move so her dress slid up her thigh giving them a little hope to catch more, but ultimately move back so it'd slide back into it's original position.

But that's not what he found mesmerizing about it, it was the fact that she was unnaturally graceful that he found was distracting him the most. It was the fact that the grace that she was showing as she manipulated her body for very seductive dancing was what he found got his heart pounding in his chest, his blood racing in his veins, and made his mouth completely dry whenever she would even remotely look his way. Morgan had been right; he was completely and utterly taken in by her.

He hadn't even noticed Lucy walk up to the table until she spoke, "She's cute, huh?"

He physically turned away from where Kaitlin was to look at Lucy, "Cute…isn't exactly the word that should be used here."

She laughed quietly, "Yeah…I've had those moments but this is the part that you should be watching." He turned back to look at Kaitlin. "Okay see the guy to the right of her?" He nodded, "Well he's going to reach out for her in…three…two…one. Now pay attention to what Katie will do." As if on cue the guy on the right went to wrap his hand around Kaitlin's waist but she slipped just out of reach so he couldn't touch her.

Reid raised his eyebrows but then when the other guy reached for her she dodged again, and he tried to not laugh. "Is she toying with them?"

"Not intentionally…at least I don't think it's intentional. She just really, really hates alpha males."

He looked back at Lucy, "But wasn't Mikey…?"

She shook her head, "Mikey looked the way he looked and acted the way he acted in public to keep her safe." She looked at him, "I'm not sure if you realized but she's sort of…a danger magnet."

"I have noticed that actually."

She took a long sip of her drink, "Though I suppose her instincts have gotten better since university. Like her ability to dodge…"

"What happened?" He paused, "To make her hate alpha males so much…I mean."

She bit her lip, "I suppose I can tell you…" She looked at him from the corner of her eye, "Considering the rate you two are going you're probably bound to find out." She took another long sip from her straw. "I don't know the details completely considering it happened at her first high school but from what she told me, it seemed as if she got in trouble with the football team for not letting one of the team members cop a feel while she was dating him. They called her a tease and proceeded to beat her until she was black and blue or at least what she could cover up was. Then a couple of weeks later she got into a fight with the prettiest girl at the school for setting another kid up…which angered the entire popular kid crowd and, well, let's just say that it didn't end well. The damage was pretty extensive but she and the Ridenger twins did a pretty good job of covering up most of the damage from her parents…though she found out she'll never properly heal from what they did."

He watched as her hand tightened around her glass and he understood what she felt. Anger and lots of it like his time after he was tortured by Tobias. He finished off his glass, "How did you two meet?"

"She moved into the house beside mine, though it took several weeks to meet her in person considering she was still covered in bruises when they arrived." Another long sip of her drink, "I saw her, a couple of nights after they moved, she was staring out the window. I thought she was a ghost at the time, she was freakishly pale and covered in bruises so that's what I had rationalized her as." She let out a small laugh, "The next day I had caught Steph on her way home, since we both walked the same direction, and I found out she had an older sister. Then, when I got home I ended up at my desk writing a letter and Steph acted as a messenger.

"She responded that evening…and we ended up writing pages upon pages of letters to each other. After when the bruises had faded enough that makeup could cover them up she came outside for the first time in what must have been a month. It was just after seven in the evening and she was just standing there breathing in the fresh air. She wore a black t-shirt and worn blue jeans…" She shook her head, "Sorry, I got distracted for a second there. When I asked her a couple years later why she had locked herself up rather than just hide the bruises, she told me that she didn't want people thinking that her parents had beaten her. God, she was the definition of 'good' back then." She laughed again, "It's hilarious, the fact that the eldest child of three and nearly the epitome of responsibility ended up best friends with the youngest of five. My mother and elder brothers called her a bad example…but if any of us was the bad example it was me."

Reid watched as Lucy finished the rest of her glass off, then he spoke, "I think the only reason she's made it this far is because you were with her."

She looked at him, "Thank you."

They watched as Kaitlin ran over, "Lucy!"

"Alright, I'm coming." She looked at Reid, "You good, here?"

"Go, keep her company."

Kaitlin looked between the two, "What were you two talking about?"

"Here, drink more." Lucy handed her the still full glass that was on the table. Her brow furrowed but she drank it anyways and Reid watched as they walked back to the dance floor.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin was drunk, Lucy was drunk and passed out on the couch, but Reid was still perfectly sober as he waited outside the hotel bedroom while Kaitlin changed. For the third night in a row he'd be sleeping in the same bed as her, though it was on her insistence since it was late and she didn't want Lucy going home alone while she was drunk. Everything seemed fine until he heard a crash from inside the bedroom.<p>

He opened the door but kept his eyes covered as he walked in, "Is everything alright?"

"Reid, the clips won't come undone." Kaitlin's voice was wavering, like she was on the verge of tears.

"Are you decent?"

"Yeah…" He opened his eyes and saw that she was wearing the same nightshirt from the previous night. It covered most of her as she sat on the floor fiddling with the clips that held up her nylons. He knelt in front of her and she moved her hands away to fiddle with the hem of her shirt. He quickly unclasped the first one and she spoke again, "I'm sorry for asking you to do this."

He looked at her and the only words he could think of to describe her were 'petulant' and 'childish'. He stroked her hair, "It's okay." He understood now why she really never went drinking with the team, she secretly wanted to be fussed over, to be spoiled, something that she wasn't allowed to do as a child.

He made quick work of the other clasps then when he was finished he helped her up and turned around so she could finish changing. After she was done they had crawled into opposite sides of the bed, she laid with her back to him and he laid on his back staring at the ceiling. There was a long pause but both of them were wide awake, she spoke first, "Spencer?"

Her calling his first name caught his attention immediately, "Yeah?"

She rolled towards him, "I'm cold."

He moved closer to the middle of the bed, "Better?" She shook her head and moved closer to him until their feet grazed causing him to shiver. "They're freezing!"

"I told you last time they're never warm." She felt herself flush and was glad that the room was dark as she spoke. "Spencer…" She touched his arm and he looked at her, "Can you…possibly…" She paused then bit her lip before speaking again, "do what you did Thursday night?" Her face felt like it was on fire as she spoke.

He rolled to face her, letting his arm slip around her waist. "Like this, right?"

She nodded then let her hand touch his arm slightly then slowly slid it to his side where it proceeded to draw small circles just above his hip. She bit her lip again as she decided to try something. The alcohol was making her brave and at that moment she wanted nothing more than to use that, "Spencer…" She paused but then looked up, "Can…I kiss you?"

At that moment with her so intoxicatingly close, he wanted nothing more than to say yes but he knew if he did he'd be manipulating her in her alcohol induced state. So he clenched his hand, letting the pain of his nails biting into his palm remind him that right now he couldn't say yes. "No." He whispered.

She frowned as everything she worked hard to get shattered into a million pieces, "Why not?"

He looked down at her, "Because you're drunk."

She paused then let out a sigh relief, "So if I wasn't drunk, could I kiss you then?"

He relaxed and went back to staring at the wall, then thought about her question seriously. He had kissed her in the safe house because she needed it and partially because he wanted to. He had become more aware of her presence over the past year and had become achingly aware of how alluring she was to the male eye. A fact of which had caused stirrings of jealousy inside of him more than once, not that he had acted on them. He started thinking about what Lucy had said at the graveyard that morning, if it was just physical attraction he needed to get away from Kaitlin as quickly as possible, that was the point that Lucy was making. But was it just physical attraction?

He nearly started laughing as he realized how blind he had been. Every morning he had been unconsciously searching the train near his usual spot to see if she was there. He got jealous because he hadn't wanted other people to look at her like that. He had wanted to be there for her after Mikey's funeral, but she had closed herself off from them though that didn't stop her from asking him to join her for dinner the day she came back. He had thought it was because she was lonely, but now as she lay in his arms he couldn't help but think it was something more.

He hadn't realized that her hand had stopped drawing little circles on his waist when he spoke, "You could, if you wanted to." He looked down again and saw that her eyes were closed. This time he did laugh though quietly. He didn't think he had been thinking for long enough for her to fall asleep but apparently he had.


	13. Chapter 13

(A/N: Yay chapter Thirteen! Woo! Yay! Short chapter is short! I'm so proud of myself for writing something short...mainly for this fanfic. Anyways...Enjoy)

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds belongs to its legal owners

Chapter Thirteen:

Reid walked out of the bedroom as he ran a hand through his hair, he had slept longer than he intended to. The first thing he noticed was the smell of coffee then he noticed that the couch was now empty. He looked towards the small kitchen and saw a well-manicured hand holding a book and the other holding a piece of toast covered in peanut butter and banana slices. "Is there more coffee?"

He saw Kaitlin jump, as she let out a squeak of surprise, causing her to toss her book across the room and squish her toast in half. "Damn it Reid!"

"How is that my fault? I'm pretty sure I made plenty of noise waking up." He walked over to her book and picked it up though he didn't recognize the title.

"Because you came out of nowhere! While I was completely enthralled by my book none the less!" She picked up the mug that rested on the counter, finished the rest of the contents then glowered at him. It would have been more effective if she had taken off her glasses but without them, and with her contacts still being in the bathroom, she was practically blind.

He noticed that the coffee pot was half empty then looked at her mug, where some of the light brown liquid still remained, "You don't drink coffee."

"I'm slightly hung over what do you want from me?" She grabbed another mug from the opposite counter and filled it with the remains from the coffee pot then placed it in front of him, along with the sugar and milk.

"Yeah, six glasses of spiced rum and coke, along with seven different types of shots in order will usually do that to a person." He handed her the book then made his coffee.

"I was just doing what the song told me to do."

"Then what about the second round?"

"They actually tasted good the second time around." She sighed, "Though it was probably over kill on second shot of gin and in case anyone asks, jello shots are evil."

"Oh really? Is that why you needed five more?"

"They tasted so good." She took a bite of her toast.

"By the way, where'd the toaster come from?"

"Lucy had it in her car; we got it out this morning."

"And Lucy…?"

"Is sleeping it off at home." She picked up her book and began searching for her page, "She'll meet us at the beach."

"And you're reading?"

"A trashy smut novel…" She spoke before she remembered who she was speaking to. She looked up and he had a raised eyebrow, "I didn't buy it…Steph did, she then proceeded to give it to me for Christmas. I threw it at her but after I picked it up I ended reading the entire thing before bed. If you take out the cheap smut it's a damn good read…at least for those of us who find entertainment in the fantasy genre…" She flushed slightly then pulled the book in front of her face. "Anyways it was just getting good. Claus, the vampire prince, just locked himself in his bedroom with one of Lycan, the werewolf king's, daughter but she's supposed to be married off to Magnus, the leader of a different pack, within a week, and he's expecting a maiden."

Reid raised an eyebrow as he sipped his coffee then placed the mug back down on the counter, "So you are reading it for the smut, then."

"I'm only 75% in it for the smut…I admit, but it is a good book. Forbidden relationships, epic battles, and most importantly scantily clad servant women." She started to make another pot of coffee as she popped more bread into the toaster. "Want something to eat? We've got bread, oranges, bananas, three different types of jam, and peanut butter."

* * *

><p>"Katie!" Lucy called when she saw Kaitlin and Reid walking on the beach.<p>

"Lucy!" When they approached where Lucy had set up a blanket and umbrella Kaitlin spoke again, "How's the head?"

"Fine, slept like an angel then woke up to breakfast in bed."

"So, the boyfriend's not pissed off that you didn't got home last night?"

"I think it was the coming home at six in the morning completely hung over and not smelling like sex that got me the breakfast."

"So then you and I not sharing a bed last night was a good thing?"

"Apparently, though if it was you, I don't he would have minded too much…considering I kind of warned him about it ahead of time." Lucy looked at Reid who was trying to cover his ears and was blushing, "What's he doing?"

"Trying to ignore us, I was talking about porn this morning." Kaitlin looked at him then back at Lucy, "I think we should stop, though…save some of his sanity for the others to ruin when we get back." Lucy nodded and Kaitlin touched his arm, "Sorry, we're done. I'll try to keep it PG from now on."

"Thanks." He sighed and sat down on the edge of the blanket.

"Wait; when you said porn were you talking about devilishly handsome Claus, and the ever so innocent Lydia?" Lucy took Kaitlin's wrist and pulled her close enough that their bodies touched, her arm then wrapped itself around Kaitlin's waist. "Dearest Lydia, the smell of your blood is intoxicating, stay here tonight and let me feast upon you." She made a show of devouring Kaitlin's body with her eyes then her voice dropped down to a seductive tone, "All of you."

Reid let out a groan and his hand met his forehead as Kaitlin went along with it. "But Claus, I-I…I'm supposed to be married next week." Kaitlin's voice took on an innocent quiver.

"That's supposed to stop me? They won't know and if anyone finds out I'll influence them." Lucy's hand began moving upwards to where the tie of Kaitlin's bikini was under her dress.

"Claus, we can't! These sorts of relationships are forbidden. Crossing these sorts of lines is wrong!" Kaitlin pleaded as she bit her lip and tried not to look at Reid.

Reid opened the book he had brought with him and began muttering, though it wasn't entirely working, "I'm not looking, I'm not listening. Don't pay any more attention to them."

Lucy's free hand lifted Kaitlin's face so that they were looking at each other, "Is that what your father told you? If you're serious, tell me to stop." Lucy exposed Kaitlin's neck to her completely but her voice lost the seductive tone as her nose began running along the exposed skin, "As Lydia argued with herself over what she wanted and what she thought was wrong, she heard herself whimper as Claus' breath ghosted over her skin as his hand slipped under her dress and began undoing the ties of her smalls." Lucy's fingers plucked at the strings of Kaitlin's bikini from outside her dress as she waited for Kaitlin to break character.

Kaitlin's voice became tense, "Lucy I swear to God if you undo my bathing suit I will murder you."

"Chomp." She spoke loud enough for Reid to look up.

"Wait…what?" Kaitlin felt Lucy's teeth sink into her neck, not hard enough for it to draw blood but enough to make it look like it had been left there previously.

Lucy pulled away, "There, now you shouldn't have any trouble going around if Reid's with you." Reid looked at her and saw something he thought was sorrow. "So I'm going to grab some antiseptic for that, just in case, I'll be back."

Kaitlin watched as Lucy left then sat down beside Reid, she removed her sunglasses and rubbed her eyes. He spoke quietly, "Are you sure you should be doing those sorts of things with someone's who's in love with you?"

She looked at him sadly, "It's not like its unrequited, I love her too…but in the end we both still prefer men to women. Besides, I want kids and she doesn't."

"You two have had this talk then?" He raised an eyebrow at that.

"Almost a decade ago…then again when Mikey died. Besides, what if it failed epically? I'd lose my best friend! I think that'd be the death of me, not a bullet, not torture, but losing the one good, untainted thing left in my life would kill me." She smiled at him, then remembered her promise to JJ, "Hey…Reid." Her smile quickly turned into a grin. He looked at her, then realized that she was grinning and a brief look of horror passed on his face as she spoke again, "Take off your shirt."

"What? Why?"

She pulled a small blue tube out of her bag, "Sunscreen. JJ would murder me if I returned with you sunburnt mainly when she reminded me before we left."

"Why do I need to strip? It's not like I plan on going to…" He watched as her face fell and she turned away from him.

"That's fine," She muttered as she began doodling in the sand with her finger, "You wouldn't come and dance with me last night…why should I expect you to come play in the water with me?"

He let out a groan, "Fine."

She heard the sound of clothes being removed then turned. She let out a breath when she saw him and unconsciously whispered, "Maker's breath…"

"What?" Suddenly, with Kaitlin's gaze on him, he felt self-conscious.

"I was just thinking…that you're beautiful…that's all."

"Thanks?" He wasn't sure how to feel about that.

"Don't worry; it's in a manly way." She moved back beside him after dusting the sand off of her fingers. "Turn please."

He did then felt her spread the cold sunscreen on his back, then he thought of something, "Kaitlin…who's the 'Maker'?"

"Steph got me addicted to this game over Christmas…it's the in game god." She continued to spread the sunscreen around then began to rub it in.

"I brought you antiseptic…" Lucy looked at them, "Kaitlin I swear, if the sexy times started without me, I will be very angry."

Kaitlin looked back, "It's just sunscreen, love. JJ made me promise to return him in one non-charcoaled piece."

"I'm not an object." Reid told her.

She smiled, "Anyways you said something about antiseptic?" She pressed her lips into a firm line.

"Yeah I'll apply it while you're doing that." Lucy sat down behind her.

"Thanks." She concentrated on Reid as she felt the sting of antiseptic press into her exposed bite mark though she still let out a hissed breath. "How bad is it?"

"It's a little red, but there shouldn't be any other problems." Lucy removed the antiseptic covered cloth then slapped a bandage on it. "You know one disadvantage about summer is that there always little kids around on the beaches."

Kaitlin pulled away from Reid and looked around, "What where?" She started to notice the families start to pour in. "Kids are so cute as kids…teenagers however are not." She handed Reid the bottle of sunscreen, then pulled out another one then she started applying it to herself.

"You know what this calls for…the happy family profiling game." Lucy told her.

She nodded, but Reid looked at them with his jaw dropped, "Are you serious?" He asked and they both nodded. "Okay I'm going back to my book."

"Sunscreen first." Kaitlin told him and he let out a sigh.

* * *

><p>Lucy and Reid watched as Kaitlin waded through the water slowly when Lucy spoke, "So have you decided…about whether it is just physical attraction or something more?"<p>

"It's…something more…probably."

"Probably? What do you mean, probably?" She lowered her sunglasses to look at him.

"I mean, I'm not sure. Once I think something's there I start analyzing it and it disappears."

"Then stop analyzing it."

"I can't just stop analyzing it!" He frowned then stared at his book and muttered; "Besides she'd never fall for someone like me."

Lucy swallowed back the laugh that built in throat. He may have been a genius but he was still so naïve when it came to women. "You two hold hands every chance you get, you've slept in the same bed for the past three nights, and I know for a fact that you two have made out and correct me if I'm wrong, she the one who instigated it, right? So tell me Dr. Reid, what part of that says that she's not interested in you?"

He thought about it for a couple of minutes then looked at where Kaitlin was standing in the water shivering. "The part where she looks like that! She's shivering and she's still managing to draw the looks of every man who walks by!"

Lucy looked at Kaitlin then back at him, "But does any of that matter if she's only looking at you?" He opened his mouth but Kaitlin's phone started ringing. She dug it out of Kaitlin's bag, "Think about it some more." She answered the phone, "You've reached Agent Kaitlin Melrose's cell phone this is Lucy speaking." She listened for a second then got up, "She's frolicking right now, please hold while I bring the phone to her."

* * *

><p>"Ow…ow…ow." Kaitlin muttered from inside the main bathroom as she peeled off the bandage from her neck. Reid heard one final quick rip followed by, "MOTHER FUCKER!"<p>

"You alright?" He asked from outside the door.

She walked out with a wet towel attached to her neck, "Depends on what you're asking about."

"Let me see." She removed the towel and he looked at the red mark left by the bandage, "The good news is that the bite is already healing."

"And the bad news?"

"The place where the bandage stuck to you is really red."

"It hurts like a bitch too."

He raised an eyebrow, "You're swearing."

"I know, sorry. It just really hurts." She looked out the darkened balcony window then back at him with a smile, "So are you ready to go? The fireworks will be starting soon."

He went to reach for her hand but stopped himself and clenched his hands into fists, "Actually I was thinking I'd meet you there."

He watched as her smile faltered slightly, but she nodded. "Alright, I'll see you there. At the same spot we met Lucy earlier okay?"

"Alright." He watched as she placed the towel on the counter and grabbed her purse. She waved as she walked out the door then he began to watch the clock. After five minutes had passed he left.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin waited anxiously for both Reid and Lucy to show up, she really didn't like being left alone like this. She looked around again but still didn't see any sign of either of them. She gripped her dress and took a calming breath as a couple of guys walked by. "Come on, Reid. Where are you?"<p>

She felt a hand cover hers and gently removed her hand from her dress. She instantly knew who the hand belonged to before he spoke. "Sorry to make you wait." Reid looked at her and she smiled at him.

Her hand gave his a little squeeze, "It's alright."

A minute or two passed before either of them spoke again but he broke the silence between them, "Kaitlin."

"Hmm?"

He tried again, this time gently squeezing her hand, "Katie." That got her attention and she looked at him. Before she could speak his lips were against hers. He pulled away before she could respond and slipped the stem of a flower into her other hand. He leaned in to whisper, "Happy birthday."

She flushed and looked down at the flower in her hand. Even in the darkness she could tell that it was a red rose. She looked back at him then noticed the faint blush on his cheeks. She smiled and whispered, "Thank you."


	14. Chapter 14

(A/N: Yay! Chapter Fourteen! Yay!)

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds belongs to its legal owners

Chapter Fourteen:

Kaitlin thought about the previous night as she stared into the bare chest of Spencer Reid as her head rested on his arm. She wanted to say that they had spent all night talking after the fireworks but she couldn't. Her still kiss swollen lips would mark her for a liar. At the fireworks show everything was fine, Lucy's presence there helped calm whatever urges may have come up. But the moment she opened the bedroom door after she had managed to change into her pajamas, it was like a dam broke.

They started kissing in the doorway only stopping to breathe and move to the bed but despite her divesting him of his shirt nothing else happened. They just kissed and it was everything their first wasn't. It wasn't driving by the need to be comforted; it was driven by their want for each other. It was driven by her want to be held, to be kissed, to touch and to be touched, though the latter two didn't really happen.

She hesitated as she thought about why Reid did what he did. Normally she thought he was just being nice to her after she came back to the BAU but that rose he gave her confused her to no end. He knew what it meant. She, and the rest of their team, had seen him borrow her book of flowers and their meanings from her though he had returned it in less than an hour. She let out a sigh then began to untangle herself from him, though his arm around her waist tightened and his lips met the top of her head.

Her lips pressed into a firm line then she mumbled, "Say something when you wake up rather than just leaving me to think to by myself."

"Sorry, but you looked like you were lost in thought. I didn't need you to pull another gun on me." His voice was husky from sleep and caused a jolt of something to pass through her.

She took a calming breath as she thought, 'It's not just something. It's lust. You really are acting like a hormone driven teenager.' But when she spoke she was glad that the thick blanket on top of them concealed the hand that wasn't wrapped around him as she clenched it into a fist, "That was one time."

"But it was terrifying considering it was you holding the gun." Once again his voice sent little jolts through her.

She felt her fake nails pierce her skin then felt the blood well up as she tried to remain in control herself. She spoke quietly but quickly, "I'm sorry."

He laughed slightly, "It's alright it was a while ago after all."

She laughed though it was quiet, "If it makes you feel any better I don't have my gun on me."

She felt his hand slide up her back with the gentlest caresses. He spoke, "It does honestly." His hand continued its ascent up her back slowly approaching her shoulder blades where her camisole cut off. When his fingers touched her back he felt her shiver which caused him to smile. That's when he felt a barely noticeable raised line on her back though it didn't stop his hand from continuing from exploring it. He felt a few more lines then suddenly a dip followed by softer skin. He looked down at her and saw her blush as she realized what he knew. "You…have a tattoo?"

This time the hand around his waist clenched into a fist but she smiled. "You know I'm feeling kind of hungry, so I'm going to go get ready." She pulled away from him, slipped out of the bed then into the bathroom before he could say anything.

He rolled onto his back then stared at his hand. He had seen the briefest flashes of red and black on her back as she fled to the bathroom. She had been trembling when he asked her; it was just another secret she was keeping from him. He groaned, got out of bed and then walked out of the room, closing the door behind him.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin pulled a thin blanket over Reid as he slept on the couch. She didn't blame him. She had dragged him to four different malls, six gift stores and still managed to convince him to walk the strip that she had gone to with Lucy just to find souvenirs for the others. She had only been satisfied when she had ten different bags in the trunk of her jeep. She looked at Reid with a sad smile then quickly turned to the counter where she had left her bottle of alcohol-less wine. She grabbed two glasses, in case he woke up and joined her, then headed to where the hot tub was.<p>

She began running the water and poured some bubble bath into it before changing into her new swimsuit, which had been washed by Lucy. She filled up one of the glasses then she carried the bottle to the tub. Then as she got in she placed the bottle beside the tub for easy access. She turned off the water once the tub was full enough, set the jets onto a medium setting then sunk into it, the water came up to her neck when she was finally comfortable.

* * *

><p>Reid awoke when he realized the hotel room was too quiet. His hands clenched the blanket, that hadn't been there when he had fallen asleep. He looked around the room noticing that Kaitlin wasn't there so he called out, "Kaitlin?"<p>

"I'm in here!" She called back.

He stood then went to the bedroom, which he immediately realized was empty then he noticed the bathroom door was open. He walked in and saw her neck deep in bubbles in the hot tub. His face flushed and he quickly turned around, "Sorry!"

"Spencer~!" She called before he could leave. "It's alright I have a bathing suit on." She saw the tension leave him, "I wouldn't have left the door open if I wasn't wearing one."

He looked at her then noticed the bottle and glass in her hand, "You're drinking again!"

She held up the bottle so he could see the writing better, "Its alcohol free…so it's like drinking expensive juice." She pointed to the glass on top of the counter. "Join me?"

He walked over to the tub then slipped the bottle out of her hand as he read the label repetitively, "Are you sure this doesn't have any alcohol in it?"

"Spencer." She looked up at him, "Grab your suit and join me."

"What? I'm not joining you!"

"Please." When she figured out that he wasn't going to budge she sighed, "Fine, at least drink with me."

He remembered the last time someone had made a compromise that involved joining them in some sort of water filled environment, he had ended up in the pool in his work clothes, soaked, so he eyed at Kaitlin suspiciously, "You aren't going to pull me in are you?"

"The water's not deep enough for that besides you might end up screwing up your knee again if I did." She took a sip of her drink, "So I'm not going to pull you in." She looked at him again, "Pull up a stool and come drink with me." This time her voice accidentally turned needy, "Please."

He sighed, grabbed the stool from under the counter then grabbed the glass. He brought the stool over to the side of the tub and she poured him a glass once he sat down. "So is there something you wanted to talk about?"

She looked at him then back at the ruby red liquid in her glass, "Not really…I just wanted some company that's all."

"I see." He looked at her then quickly downed the liquid in his glass. "Kaitlin…"

She looked at him the moment she had seen him finish his glass in one drink, finding it strange how he was acting. "What is it?"

"Can I kiss you?"

She flushed, "Why are you asking that now? After last night…"

He didn't need any other answer; he leaned over the tub as he braced himself against the wall. She sat up enough so that he didn't have to bend too much and their lips met. Like every time they had kissed before it started out innocently enough but as her tongue slipped across his lower lip all innocence was lost. He opened his mouth to her and their tongues played. There was nothing forceful about it, they didn't battle they danced together instead.

When they pulled away to breathe, they stared at each other for the briefest of moments then he pulled away. "I'll go get my suit."

She flushed as she moved over to make room for him. Then she patiently waited for Reid to come back as she finished the drink in her glass. When he returned she helped him keep his balance as he slipped in then he poured them both another glass.

He waited until she emptied her glass then as he poured her another, he spoke. "Kaitlin, about this morning…"

"I…panicked I know."

"Why?"

"Because I'm…confused. I guess."

"About what?"

She looked at him, "The rose. I know you know the meaning behind it, so why?"

"They may be most commonly known for their meaning of 'love' but they also mean beauty and courage." He paused then looked away as he flushed slightly then mumbled, "Which is everything I love about you."

She flushed, "It's not that…a single rose means that 'I _still _love you'. Meaning that there had to be some sort of attraction before then right?"

He looked back at her, "If there was I'm not telling you."

"That's not fair! Spencer!" She ended up on her knees to stare him in the eyes, her arms on either side of him and this time he was the one who was leaning their head back to look at her.

His arm wrapped around her exposed waist then his eyes caught hers, "I'll only tell you if you tell me when your infatuation with me started." He began closing the distance between their lips.

"That's not fair…" She breathed as their lips met.

* * *

><p>How did it always end up like this? One minute they were talking, the next they're making out in a bubble filled hot tub, then the shower as they washed the bubbles off, then finally, after they were fully dressed in sleepwear, the bed…again. Kaitlin flushed, as the remnants of the previous night floated through her mind for what must have been the hundredth time since she started the drive back to Raleigh. She looked at Reid who was using his satchel as a pillow while he slept.<p>

She sighed, partly from relief and partly from him being able to sleep so easily. Her relief stemmed from the fact that nothing other than a few caresses on the waist and back nothing new happened, and in less than two days everything would be back to normal. Normal. She liked normal, but Spencer Reid was anything but normal and she liked him…**a lot**. Which brought her to her second point, Spencer Reid was awkward when it came to this sort of stuff and truthfully she still thought he was a virgin. Which brought her to another thought, she was **old**! She was four years his senior, even though it was only by four months. Normally, that wouldn't be a problem, if _he_ was older. But then, nothing about them was normal. Normal people, who weren't couples, didn't make out in hot tubs. Normal people, went on dates first, then possibly had a goodnight kiss, followed by more dates then finally the make out session. Normal people didn't share their first kiss in a safe house!

She sighed as she pulled into the hotel's parking lot in Raleigh. Her head fell onto the steering wheel loudly causing Reid to jump awake. "What? What'd I miss?"

"We're here." She muttered.

"There are easier ways to wake a person up you know."

"I know." She swallowed then sighed again. "Sorry."

Suddenly she heard Hotch's voice, "_You need to tell him what you plan to do when you get back._"

Her hands clenched onto the wheel tightly as she swallowed again, her mouth suddenly dry. She heard Reid call her name but she couldn't respond. She forced herself to lean back then let go of the steering wheel, though she kept her hands in her lap. She took a deep breath then slowly let it out, "Reid." That alone got his attention because she hadn't called him by his last name since they went to the fireworks. "There's something I need to tell you."

Dread filled him but he managed to remain calm, "Yeah?"

"I've decided to leave the BAU."

There was a long pause before he spoke, "Wait what? I must still be asleep because it sounded like you just said you were leaving the BAU…"

"You're not asleep."

"So…that means…" He slumped, "That you're serious about leaving…" He looked back at her, "But you love the BAU, we're a family…why?"

"Because I'm tired! I can't deal with it anymore!" She felt her nails dig into her palms again then she spoke quietly, "They offered me a teaching position at the academy. I get to teach the next generation of profilers and I get to train new SWAT snipers." She paused, "Although I'll still work cases with you guys if Hotch decides I'm needed."

"So we'll still see each other?"

"Well considering that the academy isn't that far from the BAU office, probably…besides I'll probably have to recruit a couple of you once in a while so it's not like we won't see each other again." She laughed it off hesitantly. "Um…we should get going, we have an early day starting tomorrow and I told Hotch we'd be back by noon." She undid her seat belt then got out.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin slumped back onto the bed, the last time she was here she managed to book a separate room for Reid, and now that she was alone she wasn't sure she liked it. She rolled over and grabbed her cell phone. As she unlocked it she realized she hadn't checked it since the afternoon at the beach. She had ten missed calls and at least thirty text messages, most of which came from her sister.<p>

"Maker's breath! Did she get dumped already?" She sighed then rolled back onto her back while dialing Steph's cell number.

"Mistress of Mayhem speaking."

"You know…considering you called me nine times and left me at least twenty five text messages, I figured you'd be crying and eating all my frosting. So I'll take it as you didn't get dumped. I'm hanging up now."

"Wait! Wait a moment!" She heard shuffling in the background and the sounds of barking. "Sorry, we were outside. Hi Kaitlin. Thanks for returning my calls…FINALLY."

"If you're going to take that tone with me start paying rent."

"I'm sorry!" There was a pause, "I just wanted to say happy birthday. Congratulations, you're now thirty three!"

"Ugh…please don't remind me."

"So. How's it going?" The sudden change in Steph's voice made Kaitlin uneasy.

"How's what going?"

"When was the last time you checked Facebook?"

"Why?"

"Lucy posted a picture of you and the infamous Dr. Spencer Reid kissing."

"Do mom and dad know about it? More importantly! When did you and Lucy become friends on Facebook?"

"No the rents don't know about it and that month when you were practically comatose… ANYWAYS! You and Dr. Reid what's going on?"

"Nothing too interesting."

"Kaitlin Louise…anything to do with you seeing a man is interesting so spill."

"We've just kissed, that's all."

"And apparently slept together…for several consecutive days too."

"Well if you already know everything why'd you call so much?"

"So why haven't you sealed the deal yet?" Kaitlin paused long enough for Steph to speak again, "Kaitlin?"

"I don't know what…"

"Seduce him!"

Kaitlin groaned, "Steph…the last time I've had to seduce somebody. You were only eight and I was drunk. That was fifteen years ago! FIFTEEN YEARS AGO!"

"Well it's not like you've lost your sex appeal…just use it." There was another long pause from Kaitlin. "There's a pool there, right?"

"Yeah."

"So ask him to join you for a swim then invite him back to your room. Then you'll be forging the moaning statue in no time." There was another pause from Kaitlin, though for a different reason so Steph continued, "Bucking the forbidden horse, or perhaps donning the velvet hat?"

Kaitlin sighed, "Stephanie…"

"Yes?"

"Pack me a new go bag for when I get home tomorrow, then proceed to go die."

"I love you too. Bye." Steph hung up her line.

Kaitlin stared at her phone for the longest time before she felt her face warm and she slammed the electronic down beside her before speaking, "There's no way I could do something that embarrassing!"

* * *

><p>Even though she said that, she was now standing outside of Reid's room fixing her bangs as she waited for him to come answer the door. She stopped fidgeting when she noticed the doorknob turning. She clenched the towel in her hands and took a calming breath as the door opened. She put on her best smile, to mask some of her nervousness.<p>

When Reid fully opened the door he looked generally surprised to see her, "Kaitlin…"

"Hi. So I was thinking since it's our last night and since there's a pool on the main floor. Why not go swimming?" She held up her towel to try and be convincing. "But I really don't want to go by myself…so will you come with me?"

He looked at her for a couple of seconds then nodded, "Give me a minute."

And that's how they ended up in the pool half an hour later, Kaitlin was doing laps and Reid was sitting on the edge of the pool watching her. When she finally stopped she looked at him, "Aren't you coming in?"

"Hold on, I'm getting adjusted to the temperature."

She swam over to him, "Come on, Reid, leap of faith."

"Fine." He slipped into the water and took a gasp of air as the cold water surrounded him.

She tried not to laugh but then paused as she thought of something, "You know…" She watched as he hesitated in answering but continued, "You never did answer JJ's question about whether or not you remained in contact with a certain actress from a certain case."

He let out a groan; somehow he'd known that that question would eventually show up again. "Why do you want to know?"

"I'm just curious, that's all."

He sighed then went to run a hand through his hair but remembered that she had pulled it back. "Yeah. I kept in contact with her…until just over a year ago."

"How did you manage that?"

"We met once a month when our schedules were free."

She leaned against the side of the pool, "I guess that makes sense." She rested her head on her arms, "So what happened?"

"The same things that happen to normal couples…we fought and we broke up."

"Spencer! Why didn't you tell me? I could have at least been there for you."

"I didn't tell you because you needed to be there for you."

"Well…I'm here for you now, what happened?"

"As usual I went to LA, so I could get a visit with my mom in before driving down. But I was distracted and she called me on it, then I kind of realized that I couldn't do it anymore."

"So you broke up with her?" She said almost whimsically.

"Yeah."

Kaitlin pushed away from the pool edge, swam to the other side then back again. "So that's like thirty eight weekends together…and that's not including holidays." She got a mischievous grin on her face, "So surely something must have happened."

He flushed, "What are you talking about?"

"Something intimately physical…" She was fishing and she was pretty sure, because he was bright red, she was going to reel in something any minute now.

He looked at her, then at the wall then finally back at her as she waited eagerly, "Fine…" He let out a breath and spoke in a rush, "We slept together." He threw his hands up in exasperation and embarrassment. The water that came up with his hands splashed her, "Crap! Kaitlin, I'm sorry."

She floated there for a moment then suddenly started laughing. He looked at her questionably until she waved it off. When she managed to ease the laughter, she spoke quietly, "I'm just relieved…that's one less thing separating us." Then when the remainder of laughter stopped fully, she looked at him again, "So has there been anyone since the famous Lila Archer?"

"Not really."

"What's that mean?"

"It means that there's one, but she keeps giving me mixed signals. One minute everything will be fine then the next she'll be pushing me away."

"Let me guess she's older right?"

"Yeah…"

"She's embarrassed by her age…simple as that."

He paused then after a while he spoke, "What about you? Surely there have been others."

She flushed, "You mean besides Mikey?" He nodded and her blush got deeper. "Besides that one time with Lucy at her apartment? There hasn't been anyone. I mean I've had boyfriends…but I never slept with them. I was still in high school after all."

They both jumped when they heard a third voice, "Hey you two, the pool is closing for the night."

Kaitlin turned, "Okay we'll be right out." She swam to the edge again then lifted herself up and out the pool. She stood and offered Reid a hand and pulled him out.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome." She went to her towel and quickly began drying herself off, while Steph's voice repeated itself in her head, telling her to invite him back to her room. When she was dry enough she slipped on her sundress then turned to look at him. She flushed then spoke as her thoughts started to spin wildly. "Um…Spencer…"

He turned to look at her, "Yeah?"

She opened her mouth but then closed it as her face burned, 'Come on, Kaitlin. It's not that hard, just ask him to join him in your room later because you're lonely.' She opened her mouth again but nothing came out so she closed it then smiled sadly, "It's nothing, sorry." She walked over to him as he pulled the elastic out of his hair then placed it in her hand. She slipped it down her wrist then ruffled his hair, "Hurry and grow up." She started to walk away but called, without looking back, "Be ready to leave by six tomorrow!"


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds belongs to its legal owners

Chapter Fifteen:

Reid stared at his phone as he lay on his hotel room bed; he rolled onto his side but continued to stare at his phone. JJ's number was staring him in the face and normally he would have called already but he didn't think that this was a normal situation though after a few more minutes of mulling it over he finally pressed the call button. After the first couple of rings, he heard her voice, "Agent Jareau."

"Hi JJ."

"Hey, Spence! What's up?"

"I have a question for you."

"Well this is a surprise, what's wrong?"

"What does it mean when a woman tells you to hurry and grow up?"

"Is that what Kaitlin told you?"

"Yeah, though she wasn't the first to tell me that." He admitted.

She sighed, "Are you sure about that?"

"What?"

"Did you bring a laptop with you?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Alright I'm sending you her file, do what you want with it. Oh and don't tell Hotch I'm doing this. We all agreed to keep it from you when she joined the team on Gideon's request."

"What? Why?"

"You'll have to figure that out for yourself." There was a pause on her end, "Spence, I need to go. I'll see you tomorrow."

He paused but then spoke, "Yeah, tomorrow." He heard the line go flat then pulled the phone away from his ear and began digging through his bag to find the laptop. He pulled it out, walked over to the small desk then opened it. He logged into his BAU account and saw a new file waiting for him in his inbox.

There it was the thing that had haunted him since Kaitlin first joined the team, her personal file. JJ had given him the 'go ahead' but now he wasn't sure he even wanted to, Kaitlin hadn't wanted him to see it for some reason and now he was sure he didn't want to ruin her trust in him. Despite his moral contradiction, his curiosity got the better of him. He opened the file, though he quickly noticed it was larger than it should have been. He started reading it from the top, her full name was Kaitlin-Marie Rosalie Louise Melrose, her date of birth was July 4th, 1977 and she was born in…Las Vegas, Nevada?

He read the location of her birth repetitively until it sunk in then he quickly continued to search through the file but soon realized that her personal file soon bled into the Ridenger case. He skimmed through it without really seeing any of it until he got to the evidence log. Each of the photos that were taken of her had been catalogued and put into the file. As he scrolled through them he realized that she was wearing a very familiar sweater in some of them, a sweater that he knew he had one just like it in the back of his closet then finally he saw what JJ meant.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin stared at her laptop screen blankly as she tried to figure out what to do next. She leaned back in the chair then went back to staring at the puzzle on her screen. She let out a sigh and closed the game then shut down her laptop. She had just begun packing it up, when she heard a knock on the hotel room door. She went to the door and when she looked through the peephole she saw Reid, who looked absolutely livid. She opened the door with her best smile on her face, despite only wearing a shirt over her undergarments, "Hi Reid. How can I help you?" She stepped aside so he could walk in.<p>

"Did you know?" He asked as he paced the room.

"Know what?" She maintained her smile.

"That the kid that you helped was me?"

"You're going to have to be more specific. I've helped a lot of kids over the years."

He stopped pacing, "That the kid who was stripped and tied to a goal post by the football team in Vegas was me? The only reason I didn't catch on was because you introduced yourself as Kaitlin-Marie."

Her smile broke and she let out a sigh, "You should be proud you were the first and last person to ever hear my full name leave these lips. And to answer your question yes, I've known since the moment Gideon mentioned your name when recruiting me."

"And you didn't think to tell me?"

"Did you really need to be reminded of what happened EVERY TIME you looked at me?" He paused but when he didn't speak, she smiled, "I didn't think so." She paused, "I did what I had to so that you weren't reminded of it because I didn't want you to associate me with that. Then when I thought it might be good to tell you I realized it was too late. So if you want someone to blame, blame me; the others only went along with my selfish request."

He ran a hand through his hair, "I'm not looking for someone to blame I just wish you had told me."

"Sorry." Her apology was short lived as she smiled again, "So who told you?"

He thought about it for a moment then grinned, "Alright I'll tell you, if you show me your tattoo."

"I walked right into that one…Fine, I'll show you." She turned around then started undoing the buttons on her oversized shirt until she was able to slide the arm and her bra strap down so he could see the wilting rose tattoo on her shoulder blade clearly. She felt his hands ghost across her skin as he read the scripture on the few falling petals. The nine names of the lives that were ruined from the Ridenger case were written on the falling petals, starting with Mikey's then ending with Casey and Leo.

Reid looked at the names, "All of the people from the stalker case? But why is Leo Ridenger's name there?"

"Because his life as a free man ended the day Casey died."

Reid felt a sudden spur of jealousy fill him as he realized that she had some sort marking on her body to remind her of everyone important to her, except him. She had permanently inked Mikey's, Leo's and Casey's names onto her shoulder blade and she still had the bite mark from Lucy on her neck, though it was already starting to heal. So he unconsciously placed his lips onto where the tattoo was. He continued to lightly kiss the exposed skin in front of him and it didn't take long for her legs to start trembling lightly.

He only stopped when she whimpered, "Spencer."

He pulled away then spoke, "Kaitlin, I can't replace him."

That snapped her out of ideas she might have had and caused her to quickly turn, "What?"

"I can't replace Mikey."

"When did I ever say that I wanted that?" She took a calming breath; there was no point in getting angry or to start crying now. She spoke calmly, "Mikey was and still is irreplaceable," She paused to gently take his face in her hands, "Just like you're irreplaceable. Never doubt that, Spencer, never." Her hands slipped to his neck and she slid to her tiptoes then hugged him, the gentleness never leaving her presence as she held him.

His arms slipped around her waist and they stayed like that for what seemed like forever, but couldn't have been more than ten minutes. He stepped out of her embrace but held her hand as he spoke, "I should head back to my room."

He started to walk out but she kept his hand firmly in hers until he turned to look at her. She knew her face must have been cherry red as she spoke, "Umm…Spencer." She peeled her eyes off the floor to look at him, "Even…even if it's just for one night…let me be yours." She watched as his eyes widened and blush covered his face. She quickly pulled her hand away and tried to laugh it off, "Haha, what am I saying?" She ran her hand through her hair then spoke again, "I'm sorry for saying such…" She watched as the look on his face changed, "strange…" He took a step towards her, "…things?" He closed the distance between them and suddenly his lips were devouring hers.

Reid knew that there were moments when a person just had to man up and this was definitely one of those moments. He wasn't sure what to do at first but then he thought about what would Morgan do? So he kissed her and she reciprocated better then he thought she would. They kissed until they were breathless and she became dizzy though he kept an arm around her to keep her from falling.

She looked up at him and smiled shyly, "So…is that a yes?"

He kissed her again, this time lighter than before. "What do you think?" His smile and the glint in his eye gave him away.

"That's not fair." She said in feigned shock as she led him to the bed.

* * *

><p>Kaitlin's head lay on Reid's chest as their breath calmed; she listened to the sound of his heart beating as it slowed. She looked up at him and smiled as she remembered something, "Hey, Spencer."<p>

"Yeah?" His hand played with her hair as they lay there.

"I want my sweater back."

He laughed, "I thought so."

* * *

><p>JJ checked Facebook on her phone as she bit into her toast and Will gave Henry his bottle. As she scrolled down she saw a picture that made her choke on her food. Will looked over and she held out her phone to him. He walked over to check and read the text above the picture, '<strong>Biggest hickey ever. Thank you, Dr. Reid.<strong>'

"Is that from…?"

"Yeah. Looks like I lost that bet." JJ sighed.

* * *

><p>Reid drove to the BAU office from his apartment, after both of them managed to grab fresh clothes in case they had a new case come up when they got back. Kaitlin looked in the mirror to check if the makeup on her neck that was covering up the hickey and bite mark was still good. She waited until he parked the jeep before turning to him, "Well this trip has been interesting…to say the least."<p>

"I hope that's in a good way." He smiled.

"Oh most definitely, but you know the moment we step out of this jeep its back to work…so I was wondering. Can I have one more kiss before we do head back to work?" He undid his seatbelt and turned towards her. He leaned in but she dodged his lips and kissed his neck, then slowly began to suck on it until she knew that the patch of skin would be a darker color then rest of his neck. She pulled away and whispered, "Have I ever told you that I love how pale your skin is? It's so incredibly easy to taint. For example, it's so easy to give you a hickey, if I wanted to." She watched as he realized what she had done donned on him and she gave him a mischievous smile then tapped her neck, "That was my revenge for giving me this." She knew he knew what she was talking about but she opened her door and slipped out before he unfroze from his position. She quickly grabbed her go bag and the cooler that was in back seat then smirked, "See you inside Dr. Reid."

She closed the back door and started to head to the elevator. She heard Reid's cry as she approached the elevator then started whistling as she waited. It didn't take her long to reach the floor of the BAU. She opened the glass doors and called, "I'm back!" That's when she noticed the three standing by her desk. JJ, Prentiss and Garcia waited as they talked in hushed tones. Kaitlin whispered as she approached her desk, "Oh…crap…" Then with a bright smile she spoke loud enough for the three to hear, "Hi guys! I brought back cake!"

"Kaitlin! Spill EVERYTHING!" Garcia told her.

"Spill what?" She asked innocently. JJ pulled out her phone and showed Kaitlin the picture she had posted on Facebook which caused her to sigh, "I knew I forgot to hide it from someone."

"So what happened?" Prentiss asked as she took the cooler from Kaitlin's hands and placed it on the desk behind them.

"Nothing much, so I got a hickey from Reid. What's the big deal?"

JJ glared, "Kaitlin, I lost twenty bucks to a bet with Morgan. So you are going tell us everything from the beginning."

"So I may or may not have slept with Reid…" She paused, "Wait you guys took bets?"

"You slept with him?" Prentiss asked.

"Shh! Hotch or Rossi might hear you…or worse…" She looked around, "Morgan might hear." She sighed in relief when saw that no one was looking at them, then she looked back at the three in front of her. "So even if I did sleep with Reid, which I'm not saying I did, what exactly is the big deal?"

"The fact that you slept with Spence is a very big deal!" JJ told her.

"Speak of the devil." Garcia looked towards the door where Reid was walking in from. He had his scarf wrapped around his neck causing her to look at Kaitlin, "What's with the scarf?"

"There's nothing I do better than revenge." She told them as she slipped her go bag under her desk. They watched as he walked to his desk and removed his satchel but not his scarf. She smiled and waved, "Hi Reid! Welcome back!"

He smiled and walked over. "Here are your keys." He held them out for her to take and when she did he took her hand. He used his free hand to remove his scarf, causing Garcia, JJ and Prentiss to gasp when they saw the already darkening bruise on his neck. "Kaitlin, I'm not sure I can do this properly. But I want more than a week, I'm not sure if it'll work because of this job but I want to say that we tried. So do you maybe want to try this…with me?"

She flushed as his words trailed off and she felt tears fill her eyes but she nodded. "Yeah…I want to try."

"Really?" He smiled and when she nodded he kissed her. The both of them ignored the whistles and cheers.

Rossi walked out of his office first when he heard the noise from outside. He quickly noticed Kaitlin and Reid locked in their embrace and raised an eyebrow, "What's going on here?" He asked, though quietly.

Morgan walked through the BAU bullpen doors while looking at some files, he heard the noise but figured it was Kaitlin being back that had riled up the bullpen. But when he looked up to see what she was doing he dropped his files. Seeing Kaitlin and Reid kissing in the bullpen had not been in his list of top five things she could have been doing. But when he picked up his files he shouted, "Woo! Go Reid!"

Hotch had managed to ignore the noise until he heard Morgan's shout, he walked out of his office and looked at the two locked in embrace. He waited for everyone to notice he was standing there then when the room quieted down he coughed and spoke, "Melrose, Reid, this better not interfere with your jobs."

The two pulled away and flushed deeply but called out, "Yes, sir."

"Round table in ten." He told them but before he went back into his office he spoke again, "And somebody cover up that mark on his neck."

Reid and Kaitlin looked at each other then laughed quietly. He smiled then kissed her again, only this time it made her dizzy, breathless and managed to cause her knees to wobble. So when he pulled away, without realizing the state he left her in, her legs collapsed from underneath her. Reid, JJ, Prentiss, and Garcia knelt down beside her as Morgan walked over but her only response was, "Damn it Spencer!" They all shared a look then started laughing.

The end!

(A/N: And it's done! So about that smut that seems to be missing...I couldn't get myself to do it. I couldn't. =( Believe me I'm not impressed with myself either. So this is the end, I'm leaving it at this. So I'll let you decide what happens between Kaitlin and Reid. And now a special thanks to whoever read, story alerted, favorited, reviewed and to all who will read this in the future. =D)


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